Mononitronaphthalene

Detonation Velocitydoes not det. on own
Formula C10H7NO2
Molecular Mass173.18 g

Precursors:
Naphthalene - 22.0g
Water - 210 mL
Sulfuric Acid 98% - 16 mL
Potassium Nitrate - 11.0g
Sulfuric Acid 98% - 7.0 mL
Sodium Bicarbonate - 10 g


Proceedure:

1. In a suitable sized container add 11 mL water, and 7.0 g Naphthalene. Mix together as well as you can. Crushing Nap. before hand makes this easier.

2. Prepare a mixture of 7mL Sulfuric acid, and 11 grams of Potassium Nitrate. Add the Potassium Nitrate slowly with stiring. Cool this mixture down to a slush.

3. After the Nap./water is mixed for a couple minutes add 16 mL of 98% Sulfuric Acid slowly with stiring. Try to keep the temp under 30oC. It is helpful to keep the container in an ice bath.

4. Add the Sulfuric/Nitrate mix slowly to the mix. Raise the temp to 50 degrees. Fluxuation of a few degrees is not critical, but keep above 40.

5. Over a period of 3 hours add an additional 15g of Naphthalene. Heat the mixture to 60 degrees to melt the product. It also allows any naphthalene left to be nitrated. Stir the resulting layers together for a few minutes. Allow the layers to settle and cool to cool.

6. Once cool, break up the resulting cake on top and scoop out. Set aside. Prepare a concentrated Bicarbonate solution by dissolving as much Sodium Bicarbonate in 150mL water as possible(about 10 to 12g). Excess Bicarbonate is alright. Heat this solution to at least 70 degrees.

7. Add the pieces of crystaline mass to the water. They will melt and start producing Carbon Dioxide. When the gas production ceases allow to cool to room temp. Break up crystal mass once again and filter. Wash with two 75 mL portions of water, and dry.

Pic: Molten layer of MNN above spent acids
Pic: Final yield of MNN

YIELD:

MNN:
C10H8 + HNO3 ---> C10H7NO2
Theoretical: 29.75g based on Naphthalene
Actual: 22.86
% Yield: 76.8%

COST:

Naphthalene: $.23
Potassium Nitrate: $.04
Sulfuric Acid: $0.12
Water: $.05
Sodium Bicarbonate: $.01

Total for experiment: $0.45