Diphenyl ether is treated with 1 equivalent of a mixture of concentrated HNO ₃ and concentrated H ₂ SO ₄ to give the major product P. P is then treated with 2 equivalents of Br ₂ in the presence of Fe to give the major product Q. Let x be the number of hydrogen atoms on the benzene ring containing the nitro group, and y be the number of hydrogen atoms on the other benzene ring in a molecule of Q. The value of x y is

Step-by-step solution

In the first step, diphenyl ether undergoes nitration. The phenoxy group ( - OPh ) is an activating and ortho/para-directing group. Due to steric hindrance, the major product P is 4-nitrodiphenyl ether. In the second step, P is subjected to bromination. The molecule contains two benzene rings: Ring A has a strongly deactivating - NO ₂ group, while Ring B is attached to the oxygen atom and does not have a strongly deactivating group. Thus, Ring B is significantly more electron-rich and activated towards electrophili