Aniline is acetylated before nitration reaction.

Question 17:Aniline is acetylated before nitration reaction.

The correct answer is – Acetylation of aniline is often carried out as a pre-treatment step before nitration reaction. The purpose of acetylation is to block the amine group (-NH2) of aniline, which is more nucleophilic than the aromatic ring. This prevents the amine group from reacting with the nitronium ion (NO2+) that is generated during nitration. If the amine group were to react with the nitronium ion, it would result in the formation of unwanted byproducts and a lower yield of the desired nitroaniline product. Acetylation of aniline is typically accomplished by reacting it with acetic anhydride in the presence of a catalyst such as sulfuric acid or phosphoric acid. The product of acetylation is N-acetylaniline, which is less nucleophilic than aniline due to the presence of the acetyl group (-COCH3) that blocks the amine group. The N-acetylaniline can then be nitrated using a nitrating agent such as nitric acid to produce the desired nitroaniline product.