Chapter 6, Problem 49AP

Methanol (methyl alcohol), ${\text{CH}}_3\text{OH}$ , is a very important industrial chemical. Formerly, methanol was prepared by heating wood to high temperatures in the absence of air. The complex compounds present in wood are degraded by this process into a charcoal residue and a volatile portion that is rich in methanol. Today, methanol is instead synthesized from carbon monoxide and elemental hydrogen. Write the balanced chemical equation for this latter process.