Q.1-Bromopropane is heated with alcoholic $\text{AgNO}_2$. Name the major organic product and explain why $\text{AgNO}_2$ gives this product while $\text{NaNO}_2$ under the same conditions gives mainly the isomeric alkyl nitrite.

Nitrite is an ambident nucleophile that can bond through nitrogen (giving a nitro compound) or through oxygen (giving an alkyl nitrite ester). $\text{AgNO}_2$, being largely covalent, keeps the nitrite ion's harder oxygen end tied up, leaving the softer, more polarisable nitrogen end free to act as the nucleophile that displaces bromide: $\text{CH}_3\text{CH}_2\text{CH}_2\text{Br} + \text{AgNO}_2 \to \text{CH}_3\text{CH}_2\text{CH}_2\text{NO}_2 + \text{AgBr}\downarrow$. With ionic $\text{NaNO}_2$ instead, the harder oxygen end reacts preferentially, giving mainly the isomeric alkyl nitrite, $\text{CH}_3\text{CH}_2\text{CH}_2-\text{O}-\text{N}=\text{O}$.

Identify nitrite as an ambident nucleophile; match the covalent silver salt to soft-end (N) attack.

Confusing the nitro compound with the isomeric nitrite ester; forgetting that the choice of metal (Ag vs. Na) is what decides the regiochemistry, not the haloalkane.