Methanol Future Potential Chemical Applications

The present chemical outlets for methanol in the more traditional regions are rather well known and are even reaching maturity, as for formaldehyde and acetic acid to a lesser degree. There are some distinct chemical uses, however, that could provide new and alternative outlets for methanol somewhere in the more distant future. Producing various chemicals from feedstock methanol can result in a better value-added ratio than using methanol for fuels. Listed here are some of the routes to higher valued chemical products  

Carbonylation acetic acid, acetic anhydride, methyl acetate, methyl formate Reductive carbonylation acetaldehyde, ethanol, ethyl acetate, ethylidene diacetate Oxidative carbonylation dimethyl carbonate, dimethyl oxalate 

Carbonylation glycolic acid, gfycolic acid esters Reductive carbonylation ethylene gfycol, gfycolaldehyde 

Of these, aeetic acid synthesis from methanol is at present a eommereial reality, as is acetic anhydride produced by T ennessee Eastman in the United States from coal-based methanol 

Some of the other products just listed, such as ethanol, ethyl acetate, and ethylene glycol can be considered commodity chemicals. Competition is strong in these products since new plants based on traditional olefin feedstocks have been built in ener -rich countries and there are plans for expansion. For new technology to justify replacing the old, it must provide shutdown economics for low-growth products, but we do not predict Cl chemistry will be able to do this in at least 10 years or more. 

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