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Ethylene glycol dinitrate
Introduction
Ethylene glycol dinitrate (EGDN), also known as nitroglycol, is a chemical compound a yellowish, oily explosive liquid obtained by nitrating ethylene glycol. Its formula is Template:Oxygen2Template:Nitrogen-O-Template:CarbonTemplate:Hydrogen2-CH2-O-NO2. It is similar to nitroglycerin in both manufacture and properties, though it is more volatile and less viscous.
EGDN was used in manufacturing explosives to lower the freezing point of nitroglycerin, in order to produce dynamite for use in colder weather. Due to its volatility it did serve as a detection taggant in some plastic explosives, eg. Semtex, to allow more reliable explosive detection, until 1995 when it was replaced by Dimethyldinitrobutane .
Like other organic nitrates, ethylene glycol dinitrate is a vasodilator.
The CH2 groups along the chain is known as a methylene group.