A ternary methanol catalyst composed of Cu-ZnO-Cr203 (atomic ratios of Cu:Zn:Cr = 2:2:1) was prepared and used to synthesize methanol from synthesis gas (CO:H2 = 1:2). Using a fresh sample of the activated catalyst, its BET surface area, ZnO crystal size and Cu crystal size were measured. The crystal sizes were determined by the X-ray diffraction method. For the fresh catalyst, CO adsorption and metal surface area were also determined.
