Trinitrotoluene

Trinitrotoluene (TNT, or Trotyl) is a pale yellow crystalline aromatic hydrocarbon compound that melts at 354 K (178 °F, 81 °C). Trinitrotoluene is an explosive chemical and a part of many explosive mixtures, such as when mixed with ammonium nitrate to form amatol. It is prepared by the nitration of toluene (C6H5CH3), it has a chemical formula of C6H2(NO2)3CH3, and IUPAC name 2,4,6-trinitromethylbenzene.

Preparation

The synthesis is done in a stepwise procedure. First toluene is nitrated with a mixture of sulfuric and nitric acid. Even lower concentrated acid mixtures are capable of doing the first and second introduction of a nitrogroup. The nitrogroups decrease the reactivity of the toluene drastically, because they are electron withdrawing groups. After separation the mono- and dinitrotoluene is fully nitrated with a mixture of nitric acid and oleum (sulfuric acid with up to 60% dissolved SO3), this mixture is far more reactive and is capable of introducing the last nitrogroup. The waste acid from this process is used for the first step of the reaction in industrial synthesis.

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