Question

An industrial method of preparation of methanol is:
a. Catalytic reduction of carbon monoxide in the presence of $ZnO$ $-$ $C{r_2} {O_3}$
b. By reacting methane with steam at ${900^o}C$ with nickel as catalyst.
c. By reducing formaldehyde with $LiAI{H_4}$.
d. By reacting formaldehyde with aqueous sodium hydroxide solution.

Answer 1

Methanol is the simplest form of an alcohol. It is usually produced in a reaction that employs the use of syngas. This is the easiest and most cost-effective way that methanol can be produced. Industries will manufacture products from preparation methods that contain reactants that are easy to come by. Therefore, to answer this question, we must find the reaction that contains these types of reactants.

Complete step by step answer:
Methanol is also known as wood alcohol or methyl alcohol is basically composed of a methyl group attached to a $- OH$. It can be formed from all of the reactions mentioned above in the options. I will now provide a representation of all the reactions.
The first option requires reduction of carbon monoxide in the presence of reducing agent $ZnO - C{r_2} {O_3}.$
This can be denoted as follows:
$CO + {H_2} \to C{H_3} OH$.
The reactant used is also known as Synthesis gas or water gas.
The second option produces methanol through the equation shown below:
$C{H_4} + {H_2} O \to C{H_3} OH$. This reaction is basically a reduction using nickel at ${900^o}C$.
The third option mentions the reduction of formaldehyde using Lithium aluminum hydroxide.
It can be written as follows:
$HCHO + LiAl{H_4} \to C{H_3} OH$
The fourth option employs the use of formaldehyde and aqueous sodium hydroxide solution to give the reaction given below:
$HCHO + NaOH \to C{H_3} OH + HCOONa$
But out of all the above reactions the formation of methanol by catalytic reduction of carbon monoxide.

So, the correct answer is Option a.

Note: It is important to remember that industrial preparation of methanol employs the use of the reaction that will require the least expenses. It is also a requirement of the preparation method to produce large amounts of the desired product.
Both these criteria are fulfilled in the reaction where in water gas is reduced catalytically using Zinc oxide and dichromate oxide.