Nitric Acid → 4-Methyl-3-nitrobenzonitrile

Participants

Reaction Conditions

Reaction Steps

In a 250 ml flask, 10 g of 4-methylbenzenecarbonitrile was dissolved in 30 ml of concentrated sulfuric acid and then cooled to 0° C. 7 ml of nitric acid mixed with 10 ml of concentrated sulfuric acid was slowly added thereto over one hour at −2° C. to 0° C. The reaction solution was poured into ice water and then stirred. The resulting precipitate was filtered, washed three times with water and then dried. The residue was purified with silica gel column chromatography [eluent: ethyl acetate/n-hexane(1:3)]. The fractions containing the desired product were combined and then evaporated to obtain 11.2 g of the title compound as a white solid.

Provenance & Evidence