Sciencemadness Discussion Board

ethylamine nitrate

Vikascoder - 3-1-2013 at 06:22

I was looking on the net and only I could find this
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethylammonium_nitrate

Can anyone tell me about its explosive properties. How much sensitive it is. What is its detonation velocity . How to synthesize it .

hissingnoise - 3-1-2013 at 06:54

You didn't read the full wiki . . .
Quote:
Ethylammonium nitrate or ethylamine nitrate[2] (EAN) is a salt with formula C2H8N2O3 or (C2H5)NH+
3·NO−
3. It is an odorless and colorless to slightly yellowish liquid with a melting point of 12 °C.[3] This compound was described by Paul Walden in 1914,[4][5] and is believed to be the earliest reported example of a room-temperature ionic liquid.[6]
Synthesis and properties

Ethylammonium nitrate can be produced by heating ethyl nitrate with an alcoholic solution of ammonia[7] or by reacting ethylamine with concentrated nitric acid.[5] It has a relatively low viscosity of 0.28 poise or 0.028 Pa·s at 25 °C and therefore a high electrical conductivity of about 20 mS·cm−1 at 25 °C. It boils at 240 °C and decomposes at about 250 °C.[1] Its density at 20 °C is 1.261 g/cm3.[8]

The ethylammonium ion (C2H5)NH+
3 has three easily detachable protons which are tetrahedrally arranged around the central nitrogen atom, whereas the configuration of the NO−
3 anion is planar. Despite the structural differences, EAN shares many properties with water, such as micelle formation, aggregation of hydrocarbons, negative enthalpy and entropy of dissolution of gases, etc. Similar to water, EAN can form three-dimensional hydrogen bonding networks.[9]
Close this section
Applications

Ethylammonium nitrate is used as an electrically conductive solvent in electrochemistry and as a protein crystallization agent.[10][11] It has a positive effect on the refolding of denaturated lysozyme, with the refolding yield of about 90%. The refolding action was explained as follows: The ethyl group of ethylammonium nitrate interacts with the hydrophobic part of the protein and thereby protects it from intermolecular association, whereas the charged part of EAN stabilizes the electrostatic interactions.[12]

PHILOU Zrealone - 3-1-2013 at 11:48

VOD of methylamonium nitrate is 6,6 km at 1,4g/cc.

Accounting for the lower density and OB of ethylamonium nitrate, it must be lower thus VOD would be arround 6 km/s.

Vikascoder - 3-1-2013 at 17:52

How much concentrated nitric acid it requires . What is the temperature at which it is made how much time is needed for the reaction to complete . Does it also require sulfuric acid or simply it can be nitrated from nitric acid alone

hissingnoise - 4-1-2013 at 02:42

EAN is of little interest as an explosive ─ ethyl nitrate, a starting material, has a much better OB than EAN but has less than half the explosive power of NGl . . .
And the fact that the wiki entry makes no mention of explosive properties should tell you something!


Adas - 4-1-2013 at 03:58

I would rather try ethylenediamine dinitrate. much better OB, and ethylenediamine is easier to get.

AndersHoveland - 4-1-2013 at 09:06

Quote: Originally posted by hissingnoise  
EAN is of little interest as an explosive

I am not sure that it can be detonated (the oxygen balance is poor, and the compound is not energetic enough to compensate). It would, however, likely make an excellent additive to AN blasting mixtures, since the AN would actually be soluble in the fuel rather, which is not the case with fuel oil.
Quote: Originally posted by Vikascoder  
How much concentrated nitric acid it requires. Does it also require sulfuric acid or simply it can be nitrated from nitric acid alone

The chemistry of ethylamine nitrate is entirely different from the chemistry of ethyl nitrate. The first contains nitrate in the form of an ion, which is very stable. The second is a nitrate ester, where the nitrate group is attached with covalent esters, this makes it more energetic and much more sensitive.

Ethylamine nitrate is formed by simple neutralisation reaction, between ethylamine (which is a base) and nitric acid. The nitric acid can be dilute, but in that case it may be quite difficult to remove the water from the product since ethylamine nitrate is hygroscopic. Ethylamine nitrate can be reacted with concentrated sulfuric acid (which is essentially the equivalent of a nitration reaction) to from ethylnitramine (N-nitroethylamine). This is essentially the dehydrated form of ethylamine nitrate, and would be of more interest.

[Edited on 4-1-2013 by AndersHoveland]

PHILOU Zrealone - 5-1-2013 at 07:41

Its impact sensitivity must be in the range 10-15 Nm thus lower or equal to TNT.

AndersHoveland - 8-1-2013 at 13:20

Quote: Originally posted by PHILOU Zrealone  
Its impact sensitivity must be in the range 10-15 Nm thus lower or equal to TNT.

It would certainly be much less than TNT, as the sensitivity of methylamine nitrate is very low (although not as insensitive as ammonium nitrate, in fact methylamine nitrate is sometimes added as a sensitizer, in Tovex for example).

PHILOU Zrealone - 11-1-2013 at 12:20

Quote: Originally posted by AndersHoveland  
Quote: Originally posted by PHILOU Zrealone  
Its impact sensitivity must be in the range 10-15 Nm thus lower or equal to TNT.

It would certainly be much less than TNT, as the sensitivity of methylamine nitrate is very low (although not as insensitive as ammonium nitrate, in fact methylamine nitrate is sometimes added as a sensitizer, in Tovex for example).

Sensitivity of TNT is 15 Nm, sensitivity of ethylenediamine dinitrate is 10 Nm.
Based on that because related molecules of the same family behave similarly methylamine nitrate must be in the range 8-10 Nm. Note that methylamine nitrate and ethylenediamine dinitrate are both solids and much better OB balanced than ethylamine nitrate!
Ethylamine nitrate must be less sensitive...because it is a liquid and because it is less OB balanced.
That's why I wrote between 10 and 15 Nm.