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. 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
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 whether trinitramide could exist. Theoretical calculations by Montgomery and Michels in 1993 showed that the compound was likely to be stable.

Preparation

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

[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. 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, however the specific impulse (impulse per mass) of formulations with liquid oxygen is higher.