I was recently hiking in China and couldn't find (or more likely couldn't translate) denatured alcohol, methanol. The only thing they offered me was canister fuel and lighter fluid (Naphtha C6-C10). I decided to forgo the danger of an unknown fuel in my cat can stove, but am wondering if I could have used this if I needed to?
I have a simple small cat stove that Skurka shows how to make. Just how versatile is it with fuel when the good stuff can't be found?

Also, as a warning, trails within an hour or so of a city in China may look like this:
They had also closed off the ridge trail for 20 miles to make "improvements".

Naphtha is a mixture of highly volatile gases. I once burned an ounce or so of it off in my alcohol stove (to salvage the container, not for thrills, I swear) and it melted a piece of it, in addition to threw a sooty yellow flame 18" high. It burns like gas, not alcohol. So, say no to Naphtha.

> (Naphtha C6-C10)

Not very different from white gas, actually.

Cheers