Talk:Nitrobenzene

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Question

Uses? I thought nitrobenzene was used in racing and rocket fuel? Production? Why does it form a nitrous group (NO2 )rather than a nitro/nitrate group (ONO2 or NO3) on nitration? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.176.118.196 (talk) 13:20, 10 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

You are probably correct, nitrobenzene probably is used in racing fuel. That application is probably ultra small consuming a mere few thousand tons. We dont list such tiny apps, otherwise these articles would be long lists! Your second question is also excellent and used to bother me too. In organic chemistry, nitrates (containing NO₃ group) are very rare but nitro compounds (NO₂) are common. Also confusing, to me at least, nitration, which uses nitric acid, usually gives nitro compounds, not nitrates.--Smokefoot (talk) 13:31, 10 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

It may have been used in racing fuel, however the two nitro compounds are frequently used are nitroethane and nitromethane. Nitromethane is still used in drag, go kart and RC model fuel. Whereas nitroethane started to disappear as a fuel additive as it began being heavily used by amphetamine labs to produce precursors to the hundreds of derivatives. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 109.156.90.134 (talk) 08:32, 9 December 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Literature (more importantly, toxicity)

Not that I want to start a "Nitrobenzene in Popular Culture" or "Nitrobenzene in Fiction" heading, or anything horrible like that, but in the Nero Wolfe novel "The Red Box" by Rex Stout, a man is murdered by the device of suspending a small sauce dish containing "a couple of ounces" of nitrobenzene to the inside of the roof of his car with tape. When he gets into his car, he jostles the dish and the nitrobenzene spills on his head and down his back. He dies within a minute. Other people who try to help him are also exposed to the poison and one has to be hospitalized. I've made a link in the article, changing the unlinked "TLV" to "Threshold Limit Value" but for a substance this toxic, perhaps it would also be good to include what constitutes a toxic dose, whether by swallowing, exposure to the skin or whatever. 24.27.31.170 (talk) 00:31, 11 September 2011 (UTC) Eric[reply]

What's a mirbane?

so if an old name of nitrobenzene is oil or essence of mirbane WTH is a mirbane? OED says: 1857 W. A. MILLER Elem. Chem.: Org. (1862) ix. 656 It [sc. Nitrobenzol] has a very sweet taste, and an odour resembling that of bitter almonds, which has led to its use in perfumery under the name of Essence of Mirbane.

The only other thing I could find via goodgle was that mirbane is an albanian female name. Litch (talk) 05:53, 16 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]