It is a colorless, flammable liquid with a distinct odor, which is milder and sweeter than ethanol. Being a polar liquid at room temperature, it is used as anti freezing agent, solvent .. Methanol burns in air, forming carbon dioxide and water. 2 CH3OH + 3 O2 ? 2 CO2 + 4 H2O. Because of its toxic properties, methanol is frequently used as a denaturant additive for ethanol manufactured for industrial uses — this addition of methanol exempts industrial ethanol from liquor excise taxation. Methanol is often called wood alcohol because it was once produced chiefly as a byproduct of the destructive distillation of wood.