The Chemistry of Powder and Explosives - Sciencemadness Dot Org

NITROGLYCIDE 219
oxide ring, and mononitroglycerin is formed. Nitroglycide was
first prepared by Naoum 34 in 1907 by shaking dinitroglyccrin at
room temperature with a 30% aqueous solution of sodium
hydroxide. The clear solution presently deposited a colorless
oil, and this, washed with water and dried in a desiccator, constituted
a practically quantitative yield of nitroglycide.
Nitroglycide is a very mobile liquid with a faint but pleasant
aromatic odor, specific gravity 1.332 at 20°. It does not freeze
at —20°. It boils at 94° at 20 mm., and with some decomposition
at 174-175° at atmospheric pressure. It is not hygroscopic but is
distinctly soluble in water, 5 grams in 100 cc. at 20°. Ether will
extract nitroglycide from the cool aqueous solution; if the solution
is boiled, however, the nitroglycide is hydrated to mononitroglycerin.
Nitroglycide is miscible in all proportions with
alcohol, ether, acetone, ethyl acetate, and nitroglyccrin. It gelatinizes
collodion nitrocotton and even guncotton rapidly at ordinary
temperature. It explodes in contact with concentrated sulfuric
acid. If dissolved in dilute sulfuric acid and then treated
with strong sulfuric acid, it gives off nitric acid. It is converted
into dinitroglycerin and nitroglycerin by the action of nitric acid.
It dissolves in concentrated hydrochloric acid with the evolution
of considerable heat, and the solution on dilution with water
gives a precipitate of monochlorohydrin mononitratc. Nitroglycide
reduces ammoniacal silver nitrate slowly on gentle warming;
glycide reduces the same reagent in the cold.
When heated rapidly in a test tube nitroglycide explodes with
a sharp report at 195-200°. It is mure easily detonated than
liquid nitroglycerin. Naoum believes that its great sensitivity
results mainly from the easy propagation of the wave of detonation
by a liquid of low viscosity. 33 He points out further that
mononitroglycerin has 69.5% of the energy content (i.e., heat of
explosion) of nitroglycide, but as a crystal powder in the Trauzl
test it gives only about 62 % as much net expansion, whence it is
to be inferred that nitroglycide has the higher velocity of detonation.
Nitroglycide has only 52% of the energy content (if nitroglycerin,
but produces 72% as much effect in the Trauzl test. It
is therefore "relatively more brisant than nitruglyecrin."
id., p. 176.
Sli lbid., p. 178.