Methanol

Made up of a methyl group attached with a hydroxy also known as methyl alcohol or wood alcohol. It's milder, sweeter than ethanol with a distinctive odour. It is colourless and volatile. Consumption of methanol is toxic and can cause blindness. It is widely used in the manufacture of acetic acid and formaldehyde.

Properties of Ethanol and Methanol

The two chemicals have very similar characteristics. Ethanol is a clear, colorless, flammable, and explosive liquid solvent that has a distinctive odour that creates smokeless blue flames that do not always appear under natural light and evaporate when they are burning in an open container. Likely, methanol, with a distinctive smell similar to that of ethanol, is volatile, colorless, flammable liquid. The distinction between methanol and ethanol is that the flame is light white and not light blue when methanol is burnt.