Any of a class of chemical compounds in which the nitro group ( 2015; NO 2 ) forms part of the molecular structure.
The most common examples are organic compounds, isomers of nitrite esters in which a carbon atom is linked by a covalent bond to the nitro group's nitrogen atom. Many nitro compounds are commercially used as explosives, solvents, or raw materials and chemical intermediates. They are generally made by a reaction between nitric acid and an organic compound.