Alkyl nitrate

Many alkyl alcohols will dehydrate to an ester on addition of nitric acid with loss of water. This process, called nitration, causes the formation of a nitroxy group on the carbon atom.

MeOH + HNO₃ → MeONO₂ + H₂O

Single Alcohol Nitrate Esters

• Methanol / Methyl nitrate
• Ethanol / Ethyl nitrate
• Isopropanol / Isopropyl nitrate

Non-Cyclic Alkyl Polyol Nitrate Esters

• Ethylene glycol / Ethylene glycol dinitrate
• Propylene glycol / Propylene glycol dinitrate
• Glycerol / Glycerol trinitrate (nitroglycerin)
• Erythritol / Erythritol tetranitrate
• Xylitol / Xylitol pentanitrate
• Sorbitol / Sorbitol hexanitrate
• Isosorbitol / Isosorbitol dinitrate
• Mannitol / Mannitol hexanitrate
• Pentaerythritol / Pentaerythritol tetranitrate

Cyclic Polyol Nitrate Esters

• Inositol / Inositol hexanitrate

• Cellulose / Nitrocellulose

• Sucrose / Sucrose octanitrate

Handling

Safety

Most alkyl nitrates tend to be explosive, which means proper protection must be worn when working with said compounds.