Abstract:CH3NH2·HCl was used to replace NH4NO3 as an additive in the reaction of 3,7-dinitro-1,3,5,7-tetraazabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane (DPT) in fuming nitric acid, and the effect of CH3NH2·HCl on the formation of 1-nitroso-3,5,7-trinitro-1,3,5,7-tetraazacyclooctane (MNX) was investigated. The process of preparing MNX by CH3NH2·HCl promoting the reaction of DPT with fuming nitric acid was studied. The effects of loading amounts of fuming nitric acid and CH3NH2·HCl, reaction temperature and reaction time on the reaction were investigated. Results show that the optimum reaction conditions determined by orthogonal experiments are: n (DPT)∶n(CH3NH2·HCl)=1∶2.5,reaction time 10 min and reaction temperature -25 ℃. Under the optimum reaction conditions, the yield of MNX is 78.5%. This method avoids using NaNO2 solution and N2O4 as nitroso resource and simplifies the preparation process of MNX. The waste liquid is easy to be treated. The recovery of nitric acid is 75%. CH3NH2·HCl can promote the reaction of DPT with fuming nitric acid more significantly than NH4NO3. A possible mechanism of promoting the reaction of DPT and fuming nitric acid via decomposing CH3NH2·HCl (or NH4NO3) into CH3NH2 (or NH3) as a Lewis base catalyst is proposed, which involves the process of nitrous acid formation from nitric acid through a redox reaction as nitroso resource.