Risk of dangerous reactions due to contaminants when processing organic nitro derivatives

Organic nitro derivatives, whether aromatic or aliphatic, decompose at high temperatures, and their decomposition is accompanied by very high exothermicity. In most cases, their decomposition is violent or explosive. In the most common process situations, nitro derivatives are mixed with other chemical species or contaminated with impurities, which lower their thermal stability. Contaminated nitro derivatives, or solutions of nitro derivatives in certain solvents, can decompose at a much lower temperature than the pure nitro derivative. Decomposition may be less violent, but remains highly exothermic. This is why, for practical reasons, the most relevant information in terms of process safety is to describe the extent to which the various possible contaminants or impurities can affect the thermal stability of nitroderivatives, and under what particular process conditions this may constitute...