Question

What happens when ethyl chloride is treated with ${\mathrm{AgNO}}_2$? Write structure of the product.

Answer 1

Ethyl chloride with ${\mathrm{AgNO}}_2$

• Ethyl chloride represented by the chemical formula ${\mathrm{CH}}_3{\mathrm{CH}}_2\mathrm{Cl}$ also known by the name of chloroethane.
• It is colorless in nature and exist as flammable gas.
• When ethyl chloride (${\mathrm{CH}}_3{\mathrm{CH}}_2\mathrm{Cl}$) reacts with silver nitrite (${\mathrm{AgNO}}_2$) then it generally forms nitroethane and silver chloride where silver chloride gives white color precipitation.
• Reaction can be shown as:

${\mathrm{CH}}_3{\mathrm{CH}}_2\mathrm{Cl}\left(\mathrm{g}\right)+{\mathrm{AgNO}}_2\left(\mathrm{s}\right)\stackrel{}{\to }{\mathrm{CH}}_3{\mathrm{CH}}_2{\mathrm{NO}}_2\left(\mathrm{aq}\right)+\mathrm{AgCl}(\mathrm{white}\mathrm{ppt})$

Structure of Nitroethane