Wilbrand, Joseph

TNT is the abbreviation of the aromatic nitrated aromatic compound 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene. It is a pale-yellow crystalline solid that was first synthesized in 1863 by the German chemist Joseph Wilbrand (1811—1894), but it was not immediately used as an explosive. TNT is made by nitrating toluene using nitric acid, sulfuric acid, and oleum (a mixture of sulfuric acid and S03). Nitration of toluene occurs in stages, with the nitro units added sequentially in a stepwise process as the reaction proceeds. The last nitro unit is accomplished by using oleum (SO, dissolved in sulfuric acid). After nitration, unused acids are recycled, and the product is washed with sodium sulfite and water to remove impurities. 

Richter discover the element indium. German chemist Joseph Wilbrand discovers TNT (trinitrotoluene). Production of aminoazobenzene (aniline yellow), the first yellow azo dye. German chemist Adolf von Baeyer develops the first barbiturate. 

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