Originally posted by hawkiye
This is not correct. Methanol is not wood gas.
Hmm... Let's have a look at Methanol:
Methanol, also known as methyl alcohol, wood alcohol, wood naphtha or wood spirits...
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Methanol is often called wood alcohol because it was once produced chiefly as a byproduct of the destructive distillation of wood. en.wikipedia.org...
And now Wood Gas:
Wood gas is a syngas, also known as producer gas, which is produced by thermal gasification of biomass or other carbon-containing materials such as coal in a gasifier or wood gas generator.
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In several gasifiers, the actual gasification process is preceded by pyrolysis, where the biomass or coal turns into char, releasing methane (CH4) and tar rich in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH).
en.wikipedia.org...
Now lets have a look at Methane:
Methane is a chemical compound with the chemical formula CH4.
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Reactions of methane
Main reactions with methane are: combustion, steam reforming to syngas, and halogenation. In general, methane reactions are hard to control. Partial oxidation to methanol, for example, is difficult to achieve; the reaction typically progresses all the way to carbon dioxide and water.
en.wikipedia.org...
Confusing! Wiki also lists the following as the composition of Wood Gas:
Nitrogen N2: 50.9%
Carbon monoxide CO: 27.0%
Hydrogen H2: 14.0%
Carbon dioxide CO2: 4.5%
Methane CH4: 3.0%
Oxygen O2: 0.6%.
An interesting thing to note is that the word Methanol isn't on the Wood Gas page.
Then we have a clarified Producer Gas page:
Producer Gas is a generic term referring to:
Wood gas: produced in a gasifier to power cars with ordinary internal combustion engines.
Town gas: manufactured gas, originally produced from coal, for sale to consumers and municipalities.
Syngas: used as a fuel source or as an intermediate for the production of other chemicals.
en.wikipedia.org...
I realized that Wood Gas refered to a gas and not a fluid, but thought that when you condense and filter it you end up with Methanol. I messed up assuming that Mehtanol was the liquid form of Methane.
Wood gas is the hydrogen gas contained in wood and organic matter.
But how do you get the methanol out of the wood?
How to Make Methanol
Methanol, or wood alcohol, is a clean burning fuel additive, as well as an effective solvent. It is extremely flammable, so great care should be taken in making this substance.
Step 1: A distillery unit, or still, will be needed to hold the wood that you will be using to extract the methanol from. It should resemble the stills used to make liquor. It should be a closed system, with a place to insert wood and then be completely closed, with a pipe to catch the condensed vapor and transport it to a separate container.
Step 2: Put the wood in the unit. The wood can be chunked or shaved, but the smaller the pieces of wood, the easier the methanol will be extracted from it. You will need to heat the unit, usually by open flame. This will superheat the wood inside, keeping it shielded from the actual flame, and so reducing the possibility of combustion.
Step 3: The methanol will vaporize and rise up to the top of the still, where the cooler air will begin the condensation process. The condensed, liquid, methanol will run down the pipe and into the separate containment unit.
www.ehow.com...
Methanol is a highly toxic form of alcohol. and is not cost effective to make on a small scale and is the stuff that eats motor parts if they are not the right kind.
I noticed this interesting bit while looking at the other stuff:
The use of methanol as a motor fuel received attention during the oil crises of the 1970s due to its availability, low cost, and environmental benefits. By the mid-1990s, over 20,000 methanol "flexible fuel vehicles" capable of operating on methanol or gasoline were introduced in the U.S. In addition, low levels of methanol were blending in gasoline fuels sold in Europe during much of the 1980s and early-1990s. Automakers stopped building methanol FFVs by the late-1990s, switching their attention to ethanol fueled vehicles. While the Methanol FFV program was a technical success, rising methanol pricing in the mid- to late-1990s during a period of slumping gasoline pump prices diminished the interest in methanol fuels.
en.wikipedia.org...
If it goes Mad Max still units of all different types will be key.
Plug phrases like "Wood Gas", "Producer Gas", "Yeast" and "distill" into Google Books (with the "Full View" setting on) to get direct downloads to PDF format Public Domain books. Full books from about a 100 years ago that tell you how to make all this stuff the old fashioned way.
Good times. 
