[hobobot]

So, my Ochem teacher wants us to find a way to test for the presence of methanol in ethanol. He says that the distilling industry does this all the time so they can make sure their spirits are safe to drink. However, nobody in the class has any idea how to do it because they can't be separated by distillation.

I was thinking of oxidizing them? Would permanganate turn methanol into CO2? or into formic acid?

Sorry for all the questions, I really need to get full credit for this quiz.

Thanks in advance!

EDIT: I don't have access to an NMR or other fancy equipment.

[nj_bartel]

Oxidation to CO2 sounds like a good route to go to me.

[hobobot]

Sounds good, I just wasn't sure if KMnO4 would take it all the way to CO2.
Thank you!