Q 12.15 How will you bring about the following conversions in not more than two steps?
(iv) Benzene to m-nitroacetophenone
Benzene on reacting with acetic anhydride, it gives acetophenone And further reacting acetophenone with nitric acid in presence of sulphuric acid give meta substituted product, m-nitroacetophenone.
The CH3CO group in acetophenone is electron-withdrawing, which reduces the electron density in the benzene ring and prevents further electrophilic substitution.