Nitric acid reaction with hydrocarbons

Since the reaction of nitric acid alone with a fuel such as petrol or paraffin occurs fairly slowly with a long induction period (longer than 0.1 sec) various substances are added to the nitric acid or the hydrocarbon component to speed up the reaction or induce its spontaneous initiation. 

Cohen and Wibaut [151] in their work, already mentioned (p. 44), on the nitration of aromatic hydrocarbons with a mixture of nitric acid and acetic anhydride, confirmed the catalytic action of nitrous acid in this case too. As the reaction proceeded the concentration of nitrous acid increased owing to the oxidizing action of nitric acid on the hydrocarbon. 

The nitro substitution products of naphthalene are easily prepared by the action of nitric acid on the hydrocarbon. By such direct nitration the product obtained is alpha-nitro naphthalene. This is proven by the following series of reactions. Nitro-naphfhalene by reduction yields amino naphthalene, naphthylamine, which by the diazo reaction yields hydroxy naphthalene, naphthol. Now the naphthol so obtained is identical with the one resulting from the phenyl vinyl acetic acid synthesis (p. 768) and this must be the alpha compound. 

Not only can the mother substances, the aromatic hydrocarbons, but all their derivatives, as phenols, amines, aldehydes, acids, etc., undergo similar reactions. But the nitration does not take place in every case with the same ease. In each case, therefore, the most favourable conditions for the experiment must be determined. If a compound is very easily nitrated, the nitration may be effected, according to the conditions, by nitric acid diluted with water, or the substance may be dissolved in a solvent which is not attacked by nitric acid glacial acetic acid is frequently used for this purpose, and then treated with nitric add. The reverse process may also be employed, i.e. the substance is added to a mixture of nitric acid and water, or nitric acid and glacial acetic acid. If a substance is moderately difficult to nitrate, it is added... 

SELENIUM HYDRIDE (7783-07-5) Flammable gas. A strong reducing agent. Reacts with moisture, acids, acid fumes, alcohols, evolving heat and flaiiunable hydrogen. Violent reaction with strong oxidizers, nitric acid. Incompatible with acids, alcohols, water, halogenated hydrocarbons. 

The nitro derivatives of the aromatic compounds are prepared by the action of nitric acid on the hydrocarbons or their substitution-products. The process is called nitration. The ease with which reaction takes place is determined by the nature of the element or group in combination with the benzene ring. In general, it is more diflScult to nitrate a compound which contains a strongly negative substituent than one which contains alkyl, hydroxyl, or amino groups. For example, benzoic acid,... 

The simpler nitrop>arafIins (nitromethane, nitroethane, 1- and 2-nitroproj)ane) are now cheap commercial products. They are obtained by the vapour phase nitration of the hydrocarbons a gaseous mixture of two mols of hydrocarbon and 1 mol of nitric acid vapour is passed through a narrow reaction tube at 420-476°. Thus with methane at 476° a 13 per cent, conversion into nitro methane is obtained ethane at 420° gives a 9 1 mixture of nitroethane (b.p. 114°) and nitromethane (b.p. 102°) propane at 420° afifords a 21 per cent, yield of a complex mixture of 1- (b.p. 130-6°) and 2-nitropropane (b.p. 120°), nitroethane and nitromethane, which are separated by fractional distillation. 

More information has appeared concerning the nature of the side reactions, such as acetoxylation, which occur when certain methylated aromatic hydrocarbons are treated with mixtures prepared from nitric acid and acetic anhydride. Blackstock, Fischer, Richards, Vaughan and Wright have provided excellent evidence in support of a suggested ( 5.3.5) addition-elimination route towards 3,4-dimethylphenyl acetate in the reaction of o-xylene. Two intermediates were isolated, both of which gave rise to 3,4-dimethylphenyl acetate in aqueous acidic media and when subjected to vapour phase chromatography. One was positively identified, by ultraviolet, infra-red, n.m.r., and mass spectrometric studies, as the compound (l). The other was less stable and less well identified, but could be (ll). 

Centrifugal separators are used in many modem processes to rapidly separate the hydrocarbon and used acid phases. Rapid separation greatly reduces the amounts of nitrated materials in the plant at any given time. After an explosion in a TNT plant (16), decanters (or gravity separators) were replaced with centrifugal separators. In addition, rapid separation allows the hydrocarbon phase to be quickly processed for removal of the dissolved nitric acid, NO, etc. These dissolved materials lead to undesired side reactions. The organic phase generally contains some unreacted hydrocarbons in addition to the nitrated product. 

These reactions occur as low as 200°C. The exact temperature depends on the specific hydrocarbon that is nitrated, and reaction 8 is presumably the rate-controlling step. Reaction 9 is of minor importance in nitration with nitric acid, as indicated by kinetic information (32). 

In this behavior, sulfur resembles iodine, which reacts in an analogous way to form polyiodides. Sulfur will also remove hydrogen from saturated hydrocarbons to produce H2S with the formation of carbon-carbon double bonds. Sulfur dissolves in hot concentrated nitric acid as a result of being oxidized as shown in this reaction ... 

The NO + 03 chemiluminescent reaction [Reactions (1-3)] is utilized in two commercially available GC detectors, the TEA detector, manufactured by Thermal Electric Corporation (Saddle Brook, NJ), and two nitrogen-selective detectors, manufactured by Thermal Electric Corporation and Antek Instruments, respectively. The TEA detector provides a highly sensitive and selective means of analyzing samples for A-nitrosamines, many of which are known carcinogens. These compounds can be found in such diverse matrices as foods, cosmetics, tobacco products, and environmental samples of soil and water. The TEA detector can also be used to quantify nitroaromatics. This class of compounds includes many explosives and various reactive intermediates used in the chemical industry [121]. Several nitroaromatics are known carcinogens, and are found as environmental contaminants. They have been repeatedly identified in organic aerosol particles, formed from the reaction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons with atmospheric nitric acid at the particle surface [122-124], The TEA detector is extremely selective, which aids analyses in complex matrices, but also severely limits the number of potential applications for the detector [125-127],... 

The same reaction can be applied, not only to the aromatic parent substances, the hydrocarbons, but also to all their derivatives, such as phenols, amines, aldehydes, acids, and so on. The nitration does not, however, always proceed with the same ease, and therefore the most favourable experimental conditions must be determined for each substance. If a substance is very easily nitrated it may be done with nitric acid sufficiently diluted with water, or else the substance to be nitrated is dissolved in a resistant solvent and is then treated with nitric acid. Glacial acetic acid is frequently used as the solvent. Substances which are less easily nitrated are dissolved in concentrated or fuming nitric acid. If the nitration proceeds with difficulty the elimination of water is facilitated by the addition of concentrated sulphuric acid to ordinary or fuming nitric acid. When nitration is carried out in sulphuric acid solution, potassium or sodium nitrate is sometimes used instead of nitric acid. The methods of nitration described may be still further modified in two ways 1, the temperature or, 2, the amount of nitric acid used, may be varied. Thus nitration can be carried out at the temperature of a freezing mixture, at that of ice, at that of cold water, at a gentle heat, or, finally, at the boiling point. Moreover, we can either employ an excess of nitric acid or the theoretical amount. Small scale preliminary experiments will indicate which of these numerous modifications may be expected to yield the best results. Since nitro-compounds are usually insoluble or sparingly soluble in water they can be precipitated from the nitration mixture by dilution with water. 

Nitroalkanes can be formed from the direct nitration of aliphatic and alicyclic hydrocarbons with either nitric acid ° or nitrogen dioxide in the vapour phase at elevated temperature. These reactions have achieved industrial importance but are of no value for the synthesis of nitroalkanes on a laboratory scale, although experiments have been conducted on a small scale in sealed tubes. 

Aliphatic hydrocarbons are seldom used separately due to their relatively sluggish reaction with nitric acid. The ignition capacity of hydrocarbons may be increased by dissolving in them aromatic amines or, as the Germans did in earlier experiments, vinyl ethers. 

The OH (X2n) can be generated from the photolysis of water, hydrogen peroxide, and nitric and nitrous acid. Reactions of OH(A2n) with various hydrocarbons arc important in understanding photochemical smog formation (see Section VIII—2). 

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