Methanol Monohydrate: Are we unwitting dupes?

ThePatriarch828

ThePatriarch828
My my! What a strange substance to be in such high demand. And what's with that chemical name? Not much being said about its use either. Oh sure- it's needed for this technology or that mechanical component.

But what is it REALLY used for? Why all the fuss? Why such a high payout for such a seemingly innocuous substance... that comes in CRYSTAL form? "Go find a small amount of this and we'll pay anywhere from 60k to 130k credits. Oh... and... uh... you might be attacked on your way back."

My fellow commanders, I submit to you that we are being unwittingly duped into service as drug mules for the ever-growing space meth industry.
 

Deleted member 115407

D
I found some interesting articles about how the crystals behave counter intuitively when expose to heat and cold. Mostly I was underwhelmed, until I found this...

...performed tests on a real material, methanol monohydrate, which appears to behave exactly as predicted by models studied by the Maltese scientists...

In the electronics industry, for example, NTE materials are used to make substrates and heat sinks that match the thermal expansion of silicon. Composites made from NTE and conventional materials can be designed to exhibit a zero thermal expansion coefficient for use as mirror substrates in various telescope and satellite applications in order to prevent them from changing their shape with variations in temperature. NTE materials are also used in laminates to control or eliminate curvatures arising from thermal stresses.

http://www.um.edu.mt/newsoncampus/researchinitiatives/archive/oneshouldneverassumewhatseemsobvious
 
Last edited by a moderator:

Eros

Eros
yeah was just going to say the same, its a crystal form of Methanol... it can be processed to give you methanol which has lots of uses
 

IndigoWyrd

IndigoWyrd
ThePatriarch828 said:
My my! What a strange substance to be in such high demand. And what's with that chemical name? Not much being said about its use either. Oh sure- it's needed for this technology or that mechanical component.

But what is it REALLY used for? Why all the fuss? Why such a high payout for such a seemingly innocuous substance... that comes in CRYSTAL form? "Go find a small amount of this and we'll pay anywhere from 60k to 130k credits. Oh... and... uh... you might be attacked on your way back."

My fellow commanders, I submit to you that we are being unwittingly duped into service as drug mules for the ever-growing space meth industry.
Click to expand...

It took you this long to figure out: Methanol Monohydrate Crystals = Crystal Meth?

And while it's true, these are different chemical compounds (see https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/22242641#section=Top for actual methanol monohydrate), the way some stations and outposts post demands for it, you'd almost wonder...
 

NascentChemist

N
Very desperate. I've used methanol as a solvent, and it can clear the room. Even more than the other organic solvents, including 100% ethanol, its smell is painfully sharp. Plus, most ethanol sold to be used as a solvent is denatured by adding methanol. Denaturing is a process that makes the ethanol foul tasting or poisonous to prevent precocious college students from sampling their supplies.

Anyway, it is a very useful precursor and solvent. That's about it. And it's not really used to make methamphetamine, except as an interchangeable solvent. Methlyamine can be used in the synthesis, but not methanol. I'd link to some diagrams, but I doubt the mods would appreciate that!
 
Last edited:

Deleted member 115407

D
NascentChemist said:
Very desperate. I've used methanol as a solvent, and it can clear the room. Even more than the other organic solvents, including 100% ethanol, its smell is painfully sharp. Plus, most ethanol sold to be used as a solvent is denatured by adding methanol. Denaturing is a process that makes the ethanol foul tasting or poisonous to prevent precocious college students from sampling their supplies.

Anyway, it is a very useful precursor and solvent. That's about it. And it's not really used to make methamphetamine, except as an interchangeable solvent. Methlyamine can be used in the synthesis, but not methanol. I'd link to some diagrams, but I doubt the mods would appreciate that!
Click to expand...

Is that what denaturing is?!?!

Man, you learn something new every day.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom