Methanol, also known as wood grain alcohol, is becoming increasingly useful as an alternative fuel. Buying methanol for your business can be beneficial in a number of ways, however, handling and storing the chemical can pose a number of dangers. Informing yourself and employees about methanol and its characteristics is critical for safe and successful business operations.

Before your business makes the decision to purchase methanol from a known vendor, buy methanol online, offer methanol for sale, utilize a methanol injection or methanol gas, consider the following ways to familiarize yourself with methanol basics:

1. Learn about basic information on methanol for cars.

2. Review safety guidelines to understand how to properly handle and store methanol.

3. Understand current and historical markets and methanol buy and sale trends.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Obtain methanol fuel information

Educate yourself about methanol and its uses, including its applicability as an alternative fuel source. There are a number of benefits and potential risks associated with methanol; therefore, if your business will be utilizing methanol it is important to be informed about its chemical and physical properties.

I recommend: The U.S. Department of Energy provides useful methanol information concerning basic methanol production and benefits. AnzacFuelTech also provides a methanol fact sheet highlighting its use as an alternative fuel.

Learn how to safely handle and store methanol at your business

Reviewing handling guidelines pertaining to the use and storage of methanol is vital for a safe and healthy workplace and workforce. Avoiding accidents is not only critical for worker security but for business liability as well. Before choosing where to buy methanol, provide employees with informational resources to keep everyone safe. Ensure an accident-free workplace by reading through safety guidelines and making sure employees do so as well.

I recommend: Utilize the resources available at the Methanol Institute to view a methanol safe handling manual, methanol safe handling fact sheets and special reports. Visit the National Biodiesel Board and type "methanol" into the search bar to access safety and handling guidelines.

Use past and present market data to understand methanol production and supply trends

Before starting a methanol endeavor at your business be sure to understand supply and demand information as well as its cost. Review such information and trends with online resources to ensure you are up-to-date. Current and historical data will be beneficial to your business and its methanol needs.

I recommend: ICIS offers international pricing information and provides you with links to methanol uses and outlook, process technologies and methanol suppliers. View past and present pricing information provided by Methanex. Review world methanol supply and demand from 1990 to 2010 and compare prices versus operating rate at Cetiner Engineering Corporation.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  While understanding safety and handling guidelines is useful for your business, be sure suppliers are following the same guidelines before making a methanol purchase.

Methanol alcohol does not get the publicity of its ethanol counterpart, but many see methanol gas as just as viable an alternate fuel option for the future. Methanol fuel and methanol injection systems are actively researched as replacements for oil-based gasoline. If your business involves alternate fuel research or even racing cars, methanol can be your path into the future.

Methanol is every bit as flammable and hazardous as gasoline, so any type of methanol purchase must be made and handled with extreme care. Since it is also not a widespread fuel source, your biggest task will be finding where to buy methanol. But there are other questions as well:

1. How much methanol do you need?

2. Where and how will methanol be transported and stored?

3. Do you need pure ethanol or a form that has been refined into methanol fuel?

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Buy small test batch quantities of methanol

For small projects involving methanol, use methanol suppliers that sell it by the liter or gallon. Smaller quantities are easier and safer to transport. Storing it in gas cans or other safe containers stays within fire code regulations.

I recommend: AquaPhoenix Scientific, Inc. is a nationwide retailer that sells methanol by the liter and half-liter bottle. The Industrial Resource Network can direct you to North American methanol suppliers in your area. Methanol for sale by the gallon is mostly done by small, local, independent suppliers like performance shops and racetracks.

Buy methanol in bulk quantities

Most companies needing methanol for refining or other projects need to buy in bulk quantities. When buying by the drum, you are handling a large quantity of a hazardous material. Because of this, buyers must often show credentials to prove they can be trusted with it.

I recommend: CQ Concepts lets you purchase methanol and other liquid chemicals in quantities from 16 to 55 gallons. Baddley Chemicals, Inc. sells methanol to institutions like businesses and government agencies for lab or manufacturing use, and their price per 55-gallon drum goes down depending on the number of drums bought.

Purchase biodiesel methanol fuel

If you need methanol for cars, meaning methanol that's already refined into fuel, you won't find any national wholesale distributors. Methanol fuel, which is a type of biodiesel, is sold primarily by small, independent biodiesel retailers.

I recommend: The United States Department of Energy and the National Biodiesel Board provide locations of methanol/biodiesel retailers across the country, allowing you to find a retailer near you.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Get clean, unused gas cans to store methanol if you're buying it by the gallon. Clearly label the cans so everyone will know what they contain. You should handle methanol with the same care and precautions as normal gasoline.
• •  Look for gas antifreeze (not engine antifreeze) for your methanol source if all you need is a liter or less. Some of these products are almost entirely methanol. Make sure it is made of methanol and not another type like isopropyl.

Alternative fuels are the wave of the future, and that certainly applies to methanol, one of the most researched renewable fuels right now. That means there are numerous educational opportunities available in all areas of methanol training and research, from methanol technicians to overviews of alternative fuels and their uses. Many colleges and universities are adding methanol production and other fuels training to their curriculum, too, so the opportunities are wide open to learn more about this alternative fuel.

If you're tired of paying high fuel bills for your fleet or organization, learning where to buy methanol, and why it could be your fuel of the future, can be a top priority. To learn more about methanol, consider methanol training and education options:

1. Attend a methanol conference for educational seminars and sessions to learn more about methanol suppliers and production.

2. Find a school that offers training and certificate programs in alternative fuels like methanol for cars.

3. Discover overviews of how to purchase methanol, where to buy methanol online and methanol gas basics.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Go to a methanol conference for methanol education and training sessions

Different organizations offer several methanol conferences worldwide, including many in the United States. Most of these conferences offer exceptional educational opportunities, from just the basics of methanol for the future to technical seminars and classes that teach you how to utilize, produce, and create methanol for sale. Attending a conference will put you in touch with other methanol suppliers too, giving you a host of contacts for further information on methanol technologies, like methanol injection and sales.

I recommend: The International Methanol Producers and Consumers Association hosts many conferences around the world, where you can attend detailed training session to help you learn more about methanol and its uses. The Methanol Markets & Tech conference takes place every year, and offers seminars and sessions dealing with methanol purchase, consumption and technologies.

Root out universities and colleges offering programs in methanol fuel

Because alternative fuel technologies are becoming so popular, many schools and universities have added them to their curricula. Look for schools that offer a certificate or degree in this area, and that offer ongoing continuing education classes as well.

I recommend: The Colorado Fuel Cell Center offers an entire degree program in alternative fuels and their uses. Arizona State University offers a degree program in Alternative Fuels with several options.

Dig up a variety of online sources for methanol training and education

If you want to learn more about the basics of buying methanol, selling it or any other information, chances are you can find it in training courses and educational materials online. There's a wealth of information because methanol and other alternative fuels are so much more attractive with the rising costs of gasoline and oil, so read up on these alternative fuels to change your career, or add alternative fuel options to you current fleet of vehicles.

I recommend: The National Alternative Fuels Training Consortium offers a huge array of courses, both online and in-person, in just about every type of alternative fuel, including methanol. The Methanol Institute offers a catalog of training manuals and educational materials to help you learn more about every aspect of methanol.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  When you look for methanol training and education, make sure you seek out education from an accredited online school or university. Because alternative fuels are becoming so popular, unscrupulous unaccredited colleges may pop up, take your money, promise you a degree or credits that will transfer to a traditional school, and then disappear. Ask for accreditation information, and if it seems iffy, contact the accrediting group to be sure the school is legitimate.