Nitrolysis of N-alkyl bonds

The nitrolysis of tertiary amines in the form of fert-butylamines and methylenediamines has been used to synthesize numerous polynitramine-based energetic materials. In these reactions one of the N-C bonds is cleaved to generate a secondary nitramine and an alcohol the latter is usually 0-nitrated or oxidized under the reaction conditions (Equation 5.15). The ease in which nitrolysis occurs is related to the stability of the expelled alkyl cation. Consequently, the fert-butyl group and the iminium cation from methylenediamines are excellent leaving groups. 

A important exception is the synthesis of the practical high explosive known as tetryl (8), prepared by treating A, A-dimethylaniline (90) with nitric acid, mixed acid or acetic 

Synthesis of secondary nitramines from the nitrolysis of te/t-butylamines 

Entry Substrate Nitrolysis agent Product Yield (%) 

Adolph and Cichra prepared a number of cyclic nitramines from the nitrolysis of tert-butyl protected Mannich products (Table 5.5). Nitrolysis of the fert-butyl groups was achieved with mixed acid, pure nitric acid or a mixture of nitric acid in acetic anhydride depending on the substrate. Pure nitric acid was found to affect the nitrolysis of both the ferr-butyl groups of (97), (Table 5.5, Entry 4) whereas the use of mixed acid led to the isolation of the product where only one of the ferf-butyl groups had undergone nitrolysis. Some of the cyclic nitramine products 

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