Trinitramide

Trinitramide is a compound of nitrogen and oxygen with the molecular formula N(NO₂)₃. The compound was detected and described in 2010 by researchers at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Sweden.^[1] It is made of a nitrogen atom bonded to three nitro groups (−NO₂).

Trinitramide

Names
IUPAC name N,N-Dinitronitramide
Other names Trinitroamine Trinitroammonia
Identifiers
CAS Number	113282-38-5 Y
3D model (JSmol)	Interactive image Interactive image
ChemSpider	24751851 Y
PubChem CID	57459337
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)	DTXSID30726660
InChI InChI=1S/N4O6/c5-2(6)1(3(7)8)4(9)10 Y Key: LZLKDWBQTGTOQY-UHFFFAOYSA-N Y
SMILES O=N(=O)N(N(=O)=O)N(=O)=O N([N+](=O)[O-])([N+](=O)[O-])[N+](=O)[O-]
Properties
Chemical formula	N(NO2)3
Molar mass	152.022 g·mol−1
Related compounds
Related compounds	Ammonia Nitramide Dinitramide Dinitrogen pentoxide Tetranitromethane Nitroformate
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa). Y verify (what is YN ?) Infobox references

Earlier, there had been speculation^{[by whom?]} whether trinitramide could exist.^{[need quotation to verify]} Theoretical calculations by Montgomery and Michels in 1993 showed that the compound was likely to be stable.^[2]

Preparation

Trinitramide is prepared by the nitration reaction of either potassium dinitramide or ammonium dinitramide with nitronium tetrafluoroborate in acetonitrile at low temperatures.^[1]

[NH₄]⁺[N(NO₂)₂]⁻ + [NO₂]⁺[BF₄]⁻ → N(NO₂)₃ + [NH₄]⁺[BF₄]⁻

Uses

Trinitramide has a potential use as one of the most efficient and least polluting of rocket propellant oxidizers, as it is chlorine-free.^[3] This is potentially an important development, because the Tsiolkovsky rocket equation implies that even small improvements in specific impulse yields a similar change in delta-v, which can make large improvements in the size of practical rocket launch payloads. The density impulse (impulse per volume) of a trinitramide based propellant could be 20 to 30 percent better than most existing formulations,^[4] however the specific impulse (impulse per mass) of formulations with liquid oxygen is higher.^[1]