1-Nitropropane CAS:108-03-2

Solvent for organic materials; propellant fuel; gasoline additive

The solvent of 1-Nitropropane is mainly used coatings, inks and separation processes.

Solvent, chemical synthesis, rocket propellant, gasoline additive.

1-Nitropropane (1-NP), a representative small nitro-alkane, is widely used as an industrial solvent and a fuel additive in automobiles and aircraft engines. The improvement effects of 1-NP on fuel combustion demonstrate that 1-NP served as an initiator can rapidly produce a large number of reactive radicals, which significantly increases the fuel conversion rate. In addition, among the small nitro-alkanes, the molecular structure of 1-NP endows it with a higher specific impulse. It provides the possibilities for its application as propellant in long-range rocket systems[1].

1-Nitropropane is produced by vapor-phase nitration of propane with nitric acid (Baker and Bollmeier 1978) or by the vapor-phase nitration of butanol (HSDB 1988).

Humans exposed briefly to vapors of 1-nitropropane were found to have concentrations exceeding 100 p.p.m. irritating to the eyes (HSDB 1988). The chemical may produce anorexia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea as well as injury to the liver and kidneys in exposed humans. High concentrations of the chemical also may produce methemoglobinemia with cyanosis. 1-Nitropropane vapors also are damaging to the lungs. 1-Nitropropane is, however, more acutely irritating to mucus membranes than 2-nitropropane. Despite this, the TLV for human exposure to 2-nitropropane is less than that for 1-nitropropane, based on the carcinogenic potential of 2-nitropropane in rats.