Science Info (September) - Measurement of Methanol in Water By Refractive Index

Dear Scientist,

Methanol (MeOH, CH3OH) is the simplest alcohol because it consists of only one hydroxyl group (-OH) which is linked to the methyl group (-CH3). It is a naturally occurring in fruits of Heracleum, in some grasses, in cotton plants, or in essential oils. Methanol is highly flammable, forms explosive mixtures with air, and is a highly soluble in water. It has a burning taste and is very toxic because liquid and fume can damage the central nervous system. Moreover it damages the optic nerve which leads to blindness; it damages kidney, heart, liver, and other organs

Methanol is an important and widely used chemical. The methanol quality and concentration has to be checked before use in steel pickling, oil well acidizing, food manufacturing, or the production of many organic and inorganic materials.

Instead of titration, refractometry can be used for content determinations (g/100 g or % mas) of methanol in water. The measurement takes seconds.

The refractive index correlates with the concentration of the binary methanol-water solution, which makes the Abbemat refractometer ideal for direct methanol content determination in water.

Please find the attached for more information.