What characteristics of picric acid make it explosive?
Answer:
The presence of the nitro group!
Explosiveness and volatility are two entirely different concepts.
**************** *************** *************** ***************
Extra Details:
Nitrated organics and inorganics constitute the largest class of chemical substances that are known for their explosive characteristics. Organic nitro explosives may be broadly classified under two structural categories:
(1) nitro-substituted hydrocarbons and
(2) nitrate esters.
Picric acid falls under category 1
Picric Acid (a.k.a. 2-hydroxy-1,3,5- trinitrobenzene) can be a useful laboratory reagent; however, dry picric acid is a shock-sensitive explosive capable of releasing energy on a level similar to dynamite. In a confined area such as a lab, the force of a picric acid explosion could be devastating; due to its unstable nature, dry picric acid is forbidden from being transported in the U.S.
Volatile might not be the word you want to use. In chemistry terms, "volatility" is when a substance is prone to evaporation.
Its the nitro groups make the benzene ring unstable. The more NO2 you add the worse it gets. However they are also difficult to add on to the molecule once you already have some, so it gets complicated when trying to manufacture these chemicals.
Trinitro=bad pentanitro=run for it! and so on...
Lyddite or trinitrotoluene
TNT is more stable than picric acid. It is really not an issue of volatility, but stability of the Nitro groups. A lot of explosives are too unstable to be useful. We don't want our shipping trucks exploding because they hit a pothole. Alfred Nobel became rich by finding a way to stabilize nitroglycerin in the 1800's and made dynamite.
The answers post by the user, for information only, FunQA.com does not guarantee the right.
More Questions and Answers: