Nitro compound

[3] Another but more specialized method for making aryl–NO2 group starts from halogenated phenols, is the Zinke nitration.

In the so-called Ter Meer reaction (1876) named after Edmund ter Meer,[14] the reactant is a 1,1-halonitroalkane: The reaction mechanism is proposed in which in the first slow step a proton is abstracted from nitroalkane 1 to a carbanion 2 followed by protonation to an aci-nitro 3 and finally nucleophilic displacement of chlorine based on an experimentally observed hydrogen kinetic isotope effect of 3.3.

[19] Despite the occasional use in pharmaceuticals, the nitro group is associated with mutagenicity and genotoxicity and therefore is often regarded as a liability in the drug discovery process.

A variation is formation of a dimethylaminoarene with palladium on carbon and formaldehyde:[21] The α-carbon of nitroalkanes is somewhat acidic.

In the nitroaldol reaction, it adds directly to aldehydes, and, with enones, can serve as a Michael donor.

Many flavin-dependent enzymes are capable of oxidizing aliphatic nitro compounds to less-toxic aldehydes and ketones.

The explosion process generates heat by forming highly stable products including molecular nitrogen (N2), carbon dioxide, and water.

The explosive power of this redox reaction is enhanced because these stable products are gases at mild temperatures.