Abstract
Deuterium enrichment of interstellar methanol is reproduced experimentally for the first time via grain-surface H-D substitution in solid methanol at 10 K. The mechanism proposed here represents a key route for D-enrichment that reproduces the high observed abundances of deuterated methanol (D/H ratio of up to 0.4, compared to the cosmic ratio of about 10-5), including multiple deuterations.