Toxicity of methanol

Compounds Causing Cardiovascular Toxicity Alcohols are the most important compounds causing vascular toxicity. Ethanol depresses cardiac muscle and attenuates its contractivity when the concentration of ethanol in the blood exceeds 0.75 mg/100 mL. Ethanol also causes arrhythmias, and a metabolite of ethanol, acetaldehyde, also depresses the heart. Furthermore, high concentrations of acetaldehyde cause cardiac arrhythmias. The cardiovascular toxicity of methanol is about the same as that of ethanol, whereas al cohols with longer chains are more toxic than ethanol. 

While it is possible to use TMOS in the sol-gel process or in coating binders, the by-product of the hydrolysis is methanol. The toxicity of methanol makes TMOS unsuitable, so it must be converted into TEOS before it can be used. The conversion is carried out by reacting TMOS with ethanol. The reaction is catalyzed by both acids and bases. Since acid catalysis is used in the industrial preparation, this is the reaction that we have concentrated on. 

Center for the Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction (2004). NTP-CERHR expert panel report on the reproductive and developmental toxicity of methanol. Reproductive Toxicology 18,303-390. 

Ferry DG, Temple WA, McQueen EG. 1980. Toxicity of methanol/petrol mixtures. Proceedings International Symposium Alcohol Fuels Technology 3 1-9. 

Liesivuori and Savolainen (1991) studied the biochemical mechanisms of toxicity of methanol and formic acid. Formic acid is an inhibitor of the enzyme mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase causing histotoxic hypoxia. It is, however, a weaker inhibitor than cyanide and hydrosulfide anions. The effects of its acidosis are dilation of cerebral vessels, facilitation of the entry of calcium ions into cells, loss of lysosomal latency, and deranged production of ATP, the latter affecting calcium reabsorption in the kidney tubules. Also, urinary acidification from formic acid and its excretion may cause continuous recycling of the acid by the tubular cell Cl-/formate exchanger. Such sequence of events probably causes an accumulation of formate in urine. Other than methanol, methyl ethers, esters, and amides also metabolize forming formic acid. 

The toxicity of methanol is attributed to the metabohc products above. Ingestion in large amounts affects the brain, lungs, gastrointestinal tract, eyes, and respiratory system and can cause coma, blindness, and death. The lethal dose is reported to be... 

Toxicity of Methanol, that would be in a bigger amount in the vicinity with... 

As already mentioned, the choice of fuels, and hence the selection of catalysts, also involves several parameters. Despite the fact that the NECAR activities demonstrated methanol reformer technology for the propulsion of an entire car, the toxicity of methanol motivated the reorientation of reforming activities to the more challenging conversion of conventional hydrocarbons, with additional challenges such as high-temperature stability and coking resistance for adapted catalysts. 

The most common DAFC is the direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC), of which there exist commercial devices also, with powers spanning from a few watts to lOOW [20]. But, owing to toxicity of methanol, the direct ethanol FC (DEFC) is receiving increasing attention during recent years [12]. The current chapter presents a comprehensive review of the research work carried out to date to develop low cost and efficient electrocatalysts so as to decrease the overpotential for AOR and ORR taking place at anode and cathode in FC, respectively. The whole work has been presented under the headings preparation and structural characterization of FC catalysts, AOR, ORR, and summary. 

Otho- alcohols are similarly oxidized biochemically. The relatively high toxicity of methanol ( wood alcohol ) is due largely to its oxidation to formaldehyde, which interferes specifically with a system responsible for the transfer of one-carbon fiagments between nucleophilic sites in biomolecules. 

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