Why is nh2 group of aniline protected before nitration?
Answers
Answer: ... The hurdles for the nitration of aniline are overcome by the protection of amino group by acetylation. The acetyl group reduces the reactivity of the ring and thus its oxidation does not occur easily with nitric acid HNO3.
Answer:
Direction nitration of aniline yields carries oxidation products in addition to the nitro derivatives. Moreover, in the strongly acidic medium, aniline is protonated to form the anilinium ion which is meta directing. That is why besides the ortho and para derivatives, a significant amount of meta derivative is also formed.
However, by protecting the −NH
2
group by acetylation reaction with acetic anhydride, the nitration reaction can be controlled and the p− nitro derivative can be obtained as the major product.
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