Denatured alcohol is ethanol made unpalatable or poisonous to prevent consumption and reduce taxes on ethanol for human consumption. Governments have their own rules for denaturing agents and formulas, with the US allowing about 100 ingredients and 60 formulas. Wood alcohol is a common denaturing agent, with others chosen for similar characteristics and to prevent easy reduction into component ingredients. Some countries require denatured alcohol to be dyed bright blue or purple to reduce accidental ingestion.
Denatured alcohol is an altered form of ethanol that has been intentionally made unpalatable or even poisonous. The purpose of adding these denaturing substances to ethanol is to keep people from consuming it. This may allow a government to levy less or no taxes on denatured alcohol than it does on ethanol intended for human consumption. Many different agents can be used to denature alcohol, and each government has its own rules about acceptable formulas. One of the main qualifications for selecting a denaturing agent is that it should not be easily removed from ethanol.
Ethyl alcohol commonly used in everything from mouthwash to cleansers is chemically identical to the type of alcohol found in whiskey, vodka, tequila and other spirits. Since many governments rely on heavy taxation of these spirits, denaturing alcohol for industrial and domestic use may allow selective taxation of only ethanol intended for human consumption. If the denaturing process were not applied, people could purchase and consume cheap pure ethanol intended for industrial use and effectively circumvent various alcohol laws and taxes.
Each government that requires the denaturing of alcohol has its own policies that serve to regulate the process. In the United States, the government has about 100 different ingredients allowed in denatured alcohol in addition to about 60 specific formulas. Each formula establishes the types of denaturing agents that can be used as well as the ratios in which they should be added. Companies are sometimes given some latitude in choosing which authorized denaturing agents to use, as different products may have different requirements.
One of the main denaturing agents that is commonly added to ethanol is wood alcohol, which is why the term “rubbing alcohol” is sometimes used. Methanol, which is made from a variety of raw materials such as wood and coal, is highly toxic. It also has a similar boiling point to ethanol, making the two spirits difficult to separate once they’ve been mixed in a solution. Other denaturing agents are chosen for similar characteristics, and it is typically a requirement that any denatured alcohol product should not be easily reduced into the component ingredients through processes such as precipitation, distillation, and solvent extraction. Some countries also have requirements that denatured alcohol be dyed bright blue or purple to reduce the likelihood of accidental ingestion.
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