Compression of solid nitromethane to 15 GPa at 298 K

The measurement of the isothermal compression of solid nitromethane to 15 GPa at 298 K using high pressure x-ray diffraction techniques is described. The compression data are fit to a model from which bulk moduli are calculated. Most interesting are the linear compression data. The a axis direction, along which the C–N bonds are aligned, shows little increase in repulsion with increasing pressure above 5 GPa. This indicates that the nitro and methyl groups of neighboring molecules may be interacting.