Methanal

Overview

The aldehyde that gives primary alcohols with Grignard reagents.

Methanal is the carbonyl co-reactant that gives primary alcohols after Grignard addition and acidic work-up.

Identifiers

Formula

CH2O

Functional group

HCHO

Molar mass

30.026 g/mol

Also known as

formaldehyde, HCHO

Properties

Melting Point

-92 °C

Boiling Point

-19.5 °C

Density

0.815 g/cu cm at -20 °C

Water solubility

Miscible with water at 25 °C

Related compounds

• Aldehydes

  Methanal is the simplest molecule-level member of the aldehyde family.

Connected reactions

• Grignard addition co reactant: Methanal → Primary alcohols

  Methanal plus a Grignard reagent gives a primary alcohol after acidic work-up.

• Catalytic oxidation: Methanol → Methanal

  Removing hydrogen from methanol creates a carbonyl while retaining its single carbon. Oxygen accepts the removed hydrogen as water in this overall catalytic-oxidation equation.

• Carbonyl reduction: Methanal → Methanol

  Hydride addition forms a new C-H bond and converts the C=O pi bond into an alkoxide. Protonation then gives methanol without introducing another carbon.

• Aldehyde oxidation: Methanal → Methanoic acid

  Oxidation changes the aldehyde hydrogen into acid functionality through the hydrated carbonyl. The carbon count stays at one, but further oxidation remains possible.

References

1. PubChem Compound Summary for FormaldehydeNational Center for Biotechnology Information · PubChem · 2026

   Used for stable identifiers and basic compound metadata.

2. Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB): Methanal — melting pointHazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)

   Retrieved through PubChem PUG View on 2026-09-08. https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/712#section=Melting-Point. Source value, complete property clause or compact miscibility statement retained; absent pressure, temperature or phase conditions are not inferred. Original reference: Haynes, W.M. (ed.). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. 95th Edition. CRC Press LLC, Boca Raton: FL 2014-2015, p. 3-278

3. Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB): Methanal — boiling pointHazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)

   Retrieved through PubChem PUG View on 2026-09-08. https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/712#section=Boiling-Point. Source value, complete property clause or compact miscibility statement retained; absent pressure, temperature or phase conditions are not inferred. Original reference: Haynes, W.M. (ed.). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. 95th Edition. CRC Press LLC, Boca Raton: FL 2014-2015, p. 3-278

4. Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB): Methanal — densityHazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)

   Retrieved through PubChem PUG View on 2026-09-08. https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/712#section=Density. Source value, complete property clause or compact miscibility statement retained; absent pressure, temperature or phase conditions are not inferred. Original reference: Haynes, W.M. (ed.). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. 95th Edition. CRC Press LLC, Boca Raton: FL 2014-2015, p. 3-278

5. Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB): Methanal — solubilityHazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)

   Retrieved through PubChem PUG View on 2026-09-08. https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/712#section=Solubility. Source value, complete property clause or compact miscibility statement retained; absent pressure, temperature or phase conditions are not inferred. Original reference: Abatjoglou AG, Miller DJ; Aldehydes. Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology. (1999-2014). New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons. Online Posting Date: Jul 15, 2011.