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
Gallic acid cyclic ether-esters (depsidones). Gallic acid is commonly used in the pharmaceutical industry as a standard for determining the phenol content of various analytes by the Folin-Ciocalteau assay; results are reported in gallic acid equivalents. Gallic acid can also be used as a starting material in the synthesis of the psychedelic alkaloid mescaline. The name is derived from oak galls, which were historically used to prepare tannic acid. Despite the name, gallic acid does not contain gallium. Salts and esters of gallic acid are termed "gallates". Gallic acid is an important component of iron gall ink, the standard European writing and