Nitrobenzene

nitrobenzene

[¦nī·trō′ben‚zēn]

(organic chemistry)

C₆H₅NO₂ Greenish crystals or a yellowish liquid, melting point 5.70°C; a toxic material; used in aniline manufacture. Also known as oil of mirbane.

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Nitrobenzene

 

C₆H₅NO₂, the simplest aromatic nitro compound; an oily light yellow liquid. Melting point, 5.7°C; boiling point, 210.9°C; density, 1.987 g/cm³ at 25°C. It is poorly soluble in water but mixes well with organic solvents.

Upon reduction, nitrobenzene is converted to aniline or hydrazobenzene, depending on the conditions. Under the action of acids, hydrazobenzene isomerizes to benzidine. Nitration, sulfonation, and chlorination of nitrobenzene take place mainly at the meta- position to the nitro group, for example:

Nitrobenzene is produced by nitration of benzene by a nitrating mixture. It is poisonous, with a maximum permissible concentration in air of 3 mg/m³ in work areas and 0.008 mg/m³ in residential buildings.

Nitrobenzene is mainly used in the production of aniline. In small quantities, nitrobenzene is also used in the production of intermediates for dyes (methanilic acid and benzidine), and also certain dyes (for example, induline).

REFERENCE

Orlova, E. Iu. Khimiia i tekhnologiia brizantnykh vzryvchatykh ve-shchestv. Leningrad, 1973.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.