Reactions of Aromatic Nitro Compounds with Bases

Aromatic nitro compounds can react in many ways with bases. The reaction path followed depends mainly on the degree of nitration (with a sharp jump from mononitro to di‐ and trinitro compounds) and the base used. Redox reactions or nucleophilic aromatic substitutions predominate with mononitro compounds, whereas Meisenheimer additions together with nucleophilic aromatic substitutions are preferred by dinitro and trinitro compounds; deprotonations are less common. The bromine in nitrobromobenzenes can be replaced by metal at low temperatures. Very weak bases generally give electron donor‐acceptor complexes.