Originally posted by Rosco Bodine
There were several strategies which I thought about in terms of increasing the yield from a particular batch , if not limited to using one dedicated
method for the entire nitration . IIRC the simplest hybrid method would be to use 97% HNO3 and add polyol until the byproduct water formed during
nitration has lowered the acid concentration to about 77% . On the nitration graph the reaction points describing the course of the reaction would
rise as if climbing the slope of the right hand side of the trapezoid . When the mixture would ordinarily be spent , it
still contains unreacted HNO3 , but the nitration ceases in the absence of H2SO4 ,
so that deficiency is addressed by beginning to run in H2SO4 , and also continuing to add more polyol , in a simultaneous or alternating addition
scheme which maintains the water content constant , but with a gradually rising H2SO4 content and gradually decreasing HNO3 content as it is consumed
by the continuing nitration .
This is one of many experiments which I have contemplated , but haven't had time to investigate . So anybody feel free to test any of my untested
ideas including this one . |