We are going to Vietnam this year for holiday and I’ve read horror stories of poorly distilled alcohol in cocktails and such. Several tourists have died from methanol poisoning.

Would it be feasible to build a small detector for methanol? I’m okay with either a small chemical identification test or something like an IR spectrum analysis.

There are commercial test kits for professional laboratories but I need something affordable for regular consumers.

  • DerGottesknecht@feddit.org
    0·
    14 hours ago

    Methanol separation is possible but not really the goal.

    If you’re producing spirits it should be your goal. Especially if there is wood in the mash.

    I don’t think the foreshots have a particularly higher concentration of methanol, other nasty stuff sure, but I think methanol is in pretty similar concentration to the ethanol.

    Thats wrong, methanol has a lower evaporation temperature than ethanol, thats why it’s in the foreshot.

    And yes, most of the time it’s greedy business men mixing industrial methanol in their drinks, but there have been some cases of poisoning with self destilled alcohol in the Balkans, i.e

    https://deutsch.radio.cz/methanolvergiftungen-der-slowakei-ursache-ist-tschechischer-schnaps-8337380

    Sorry link is in german.