Food and Nutrition Applications
Methyl mercaptan is produced by the reaction of hydrogen sulfide with methanol. It is the largest volume mercaptan produced in the world. By far the single biggest use is for production of synthetic methionine as a chicken feed supplement.
Methionine is an essential amino acid for building protein. Other uses for methyl mercaptan include pesticide production and as a general chemical intermediate for introduction of a methylthio substituent into chemical substances.