Review of the Methods for Selective Nitration of Toluene

A solution to the problems encountered with the treatment of wastewater during the industrial production of TNT could be the use of the mixture of nitrotoluenes (NTs) with no or a smaller amount of the meta-NT compared to the mixture resulting from conventional mononitration. This can be achieved by selective nitration of toluene with a nitration mixture which is more selective than conventional nitrating mixtures. This paper presents a review of the literature related to the methods for selective nitration of toluene using the following nitrating agents: nitric(V) acid, acetyl nitrate(V), nitrogen(V) oxide and others.