yes, methanol is that dangerous.

Dear Ester~

Is methanol really all that dangerous?

~Not Overly Concerned

Dear NOC~

Yes.

I once poured some of the gasoline that my dad kept in the garage for filling his lawnmower all over our driveway. It shone with a dull blue tint in the late afternoon sun as I lit a match and dropped it into the pool. As my boring old driveway sprang into flame I remember a sense of concern for the trees, shrubs, and grass that I now realized were in jeopardy of burning to the ground. My concern quickly transformed into awe and wonder as I noted how my boring old driveway had become a raging torrent of liquid flame. A moment of terror for what would happen to me if my dad happened to look out the window or come walking into the garage passed just as quickly as it had come up. Instants later the flames finished consuming the gas and I had my boring old driveway back.

I was lucky. The vegetation was unscorched, my dad was none the wiser, and my eyebrows were intact. I like to think I am growing older with age. Perhaps that is why, years later after college, I went through fire academy and volunteered at my local fire department. One of the training videos we watched showed a firefighter in full personal protective equipment holding an outstretched broom. He cautiously moved the straw bristles of the broom towards some unknown hazard. In an instant the broom was consumed in flame. The lesson? Methanol burns with an invisible flame in daylight making it much harder to identify a fire.

In my job at Piedmont I am surrounded by methanol that is every bit as explosive and flammable as gasoline. I am reminded how easily it ignites, how quickly and hot it burns, and how much I hope to never have an accident involving it.

Common sense dictates no smoking, matches, lighters, lit incense or candles anywhere near the stuff. At Piedmont we require drivers to shut off their engines when transferring flammables. Actually, within our gates idling for any reason anywhere is prohibited. Not only does this address flammability concerns but it also saves about 20 pounds of carbon dioxide for each hour we would otherwise be idling. We haven't gone as far as Magellan's fuel testing labs, where they require visitors to their terminal facilities to turn off their cell phones when they come in the gate.

Methanol should be stored in grounded steel tanks. If mixed with water it is not compatible with brass, zinc (galvanized), aluminum, or plastic. For those of you dying to store your methanol in platinum, lead, or magnesium tanks think again: it's not compatible. Nitrile (Buna-N), neoprene, and EPDM are all great with methanol but stick with viton and teflon if you want cross compatibility with biodiesel. It bears saying again that vessels, trucks, pumps, pipes, and hoses that touch methanol must be grounded against static charges.

Electrical devices that could be exposed to methanol vapors during normal operation or an accident should be explosion proof. Motors that drive pumps, ventilation equipment, or agitators, on/off switches, contactors, lighting fixtures, extension cords, outlets and any other electrical device in a methanol area need to meet standards set forth in the National Electric Code for Class I, Division 1 or 2, Group D locations.

Dry chemical extinguishers can be used effectively on small fires. But larger burns should be fought with an alcohol resistant foam (AR-AFFF with 6% foam is the best). Small spills can be remediated with sand, earth or other non-combustible absorbent material and the area then flushed with water to dilute. Larger spills should be diked and diluted with water for later disposal.

Handling and using methanol safely can be fun and easy!

For more information check out Methanex's Technical Information & Safe Handling Guide for Methanol: http://methanex.com/products/technical.html