Isophthalonitrile is an

organic compound In chemistry, organic compounds are generally any chemical compounds that contain carbon-hydrogen or carbon-carbon bonds. Due to carbon's ability to catenate (form chains with other carbon atoms), millions of organic compounds are known. The ...

with the formula C₆H₄(CN)₂. Two other isomers exist,

phthalonitrile Phthalonitrile is an organic compound with the formula C6H4(CN)2, which is an off-white crystal solid at room temperature. It is a derivative of benzene, containing two adjacent nitrile groups. The compound has low solubility in water but is sol ...

and terephthalonitrile. All three isomers are produced commercially by

ammoxidation In organic chemistry, ammoxidation is a process for the production of nitriles () using ammonia () and oxygen (). It is sometimes called the SOHIO process, acknowledging that ammoxidation was developed at Standard Oil of Ohio. The usual substrat ...

of the corresponding

xylene In organic chemistry, xylene or xylol (; IUPAC name: dimethylbenzene) are any of three organic compounds with the formula . They are derived from the substitution of two hydrogen atoms with methyl groups in a benzene ring; which hydrogens are sub ...

isomers. Isophthalonitrile is a colorless or white solid with low solubility in water.{{Ullmann, doi=10.1002/14356007.a17_363, title=Nitriles, year=2000, last1=Pollak, first1=Peter, last2=Romeder, first2=Gérard, last3=Hagedorn, first3=Ferdinand, last4=Gelbke, first4=Heinz-Peter, isbn=3527306730 Hydrogenation of isophthalonitrile affords

m-xylylenediamine ''m''-Xylylenediamine is an organic compound with the formula C6H4(CH2NH2)2. A colorless oily liquid, it is produced by hydrogenation of isophthalonitrile. Uses and reactions ''m''-Xylylenediamine (MXDA) is used in a variety of industrial applic ...

, a curing agent in epoxy resins and a component of some urethanes.

Safety

LD50 In toxicology, the median lethal dose, LD50 (abbreviation for "lethal dose, 50%"), LC50 (lethal concentration, 50%) or LCt50 is a toxic unit that measures the lethal dose of a toxin, radiation, or pathogen. The value of LD50 for a substance is the ...

(rat, oral) is 288 mg/kg.

References

Benzonitriles