Nitric acid fuming nitric acid at concentrations above 86%. Nitric acid is the primary reagent used for nitration – the addition of a nitro group, typically to an organic molecule. While some resulting nitro compounds are shock- and thermally-sensitive explosives, a few are stable enough to be used in munitions and demolition, while others are still more stable and used as pigments in inks and dyes. Nitric acid is also commonly used as a strong oxidizing agent. Commercially available nitric acid is an azeotrope with water at a concentration of 68% HNO, which is the ordinary concentrated nitric acid of commerce. This
Mesoxalic acid Mesoxalic acid Mesoxalic acid, also called oxomalonic acid or ketomalonic acid, is an organic compound with formula CHO or HO-(C=O)-OH. Mesoxalic acid is both a dicarboxylic acid and a ketonic acid. It readily loses two protons to yield the divalent anion CO, called mesoxalate, oxomalonate, or ketomalonate. These terms are also used for salts containing this anion, such as sodium mesoxalate, NaCO; and for esters containing the -CO- or -O-(C=O)-O- moiety, such as diethyl mesoxalate, (CH)CO. Mesoxalate is one of the oxocarbon anions, which (like carbonate CO and oxalate CO) consist solely of carbon and oxygen. Mesoxalic acid readily absorbs