Experiments and Calculations on Photoionization and Dissociative Photoionization of CH2CO

The dissociative photoionization of molecular‐beam cooled CH₂CO in a region of ?10–20 eV was investigated with photoionization mass spectrometry using a synchrotron radiation as the light source. Photoionization efficiency curves of CH₂CO⁺ and of observed fragment ions CH₂⁺, CHCO⁺, HCO⁺, C₂O⁺, CO⁺, and C₂H₂⁺ were measured to determine their appearance energies. Relative branching ratios as a function of photon energy were determined. Energies for formation of these observed fragment ions and their neutral counterparts upon ionization of CH₂CO are computed with the Gaussian‐3 method. Dissociative photoionization channels associated with six observed fragment ions are proposed based on comparison of determined appearance energies and predicted energies. The principal dissociative processes are direct breaking of C=C and C‐H bonds to form CH₂⁺ + CO and CHCO⁺ + H, respectively; at greater energies, dissociation involving H migration takes place.     

Dissociative photoionization of isoprene: experiments and calculations

Vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) dissociative photoionization of isoprene in the energy region 8.5–18 eV was investigated with photoionization mass spectroscopy (PIMS) using synchrotron radiation (SR). The ionization energy (IE) of isoprene as well as the appearance energies (AEs) of its fragment ions C₅H₇⁺, C₅H₅⁺, C₄H₅⁺, C₃H₆⁺, C₃H₅⁺, C₃H₄⁺, C₃H₃⁺ and C₂H₃⁺ were determined with photoionization efficiency (PIE) curves. The dissociation energies of some possible dissociation channels to produce those fragment ions were also determined experimentally. The total energies of C₅H₈ and its main fragments were calculated using the Gaussian 03 program and the Gaussian‐2 method. The IE of C₅H₈, the AEs for its fragment ions, and the dissociation energies to produce them were predicted using the high‐accuracy energy model. According to our results, the experimental dissociation energies were in reasonable agreement with the calculated values of the proposed photodissociation channels of C₅H₈. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Theoretical Study of Isoprene Dissociative Photoionization

Theoretical calculations have been carried out to investigate the possible dissociation channels of isoprene. We focus on the major fragment ions of C₅H₇⁺,C₅H₅⁺,C₄H₅⁺,C₃H₆⁺,C₃H₅⁺,C₃H₄⁺,C₃H₃⁺ and C₂H₃⁺, which were observed experimentally from the isoprene dissociative photoionization. The energy calculations were performed with the CBS-QB3 model. All the geometries and energies of the fragments, intermediates and transition states involved in the dissociations channels were determined. Finally, the mechanisms of the dissociation pathways were discussed on the comparison of theoretical and experimental results.     

Theoretical Investigation on Photoionization and Dissociative Photoionization of Toluene

The photoionization and dissociation photoionization of toluene have been studied using quantum chemistry methods.The geometries and frequencies of the reactants,transition states and products have been performed at B3LYP/6-311++G (d,p) level,and single-point energy calculations for all the stationary points were carried out at DFT calculations of the optimized structures with the G3B3 level.The ionization energies of toluene and the appearance energies for major fragment ions,C₇H₇⁺,C₆H₅⁺,C₅H₆⁺,C₅H₅⁺,are determined to be 8.90,11.15 or 11.03,12.72,13.69,16.28 eV,respectively,which are all in good agreement with published experimental data.With the help of available published experimental data and theoretical results,four dissociative photoionization channels have been proposed:C₇H₇⁺+H,C₆H₅⁺+CH₃,C₅H₆⁺+C₂H₂,C₅H₅⁺+C₂H₂+H.Transition structures and intermediates for those isomerization processes are determined in this work.Especially,the structures of C₅H₆⁺ and C₅H₅⁺ produced by dissociative photoionization of toluene have been defined as chain structure in this work with theoretical calculations.     

Ionization and Photofragmentation of Isolated Metalloporphyrin Cations Investigated by VUV Action Spectroscopy**

We investigated the photoionization and fragmentation of isolated metal protoporphyrin IX cations (MPPIX⁺ with M=Fe, Co, Zn) by means of vacuum-ultraviolet (VUV) action spectroscopy in the energy range of 8.5–35 eV. Experiments were carried out in the gas phase by interfacing an electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometer with a synchrotron beamline. The mass spectra and partial ion yields show that photoexcitation of the precursor ions predominantly leads to ^.CH₂COOH radical side-chain losses of the macrocycle with additional methyl radical (^.CH₃) side-chain losses. Ionization, in contrast, leads to the formation of the intact ionized precursor and various doubly charged fragments which are mostly due to side-chain cleavages. Although statistical fragmentation dominates, we found evidence for non-statistical processes such as new fragments involving for example single and double H₂O losses, indicating that different relaxation mechanisms are at play upon photoionization compared to photoexcitation. The measured ionization energies were 9.6±0.2 eV, 9.4±0.2 eV and 9.6±0.2 eV for FePPIX⁺, CoPPIX⁺ and ZnPPIX⁺, respectively.     

Vacuum ultraviolet photoionization mass spectrometric study of cyclohexene

In this work, photoionization and dissociation of cyclohexene have been studied by means of coupling a reflectron time‐of‐flight mass spectrometer with the tunable vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) synchrotron radiation. The adiabatic ionization energy of cyclohexene as well as the appearance energies of its fragment ions C₆H₉⁺, C₆H₇⁺, C₅H₇⁺, C₅H₅⁺, C₄H₆⁺, C₄H₅⁺, C₃H₅⁺ and C₃H₃⁺ were derived from the onset of the photoionization efficiency (PIE) curves. The optimized structures for the transition states and intermediates on the ground state potential energy surfaces related to photodissociation of cyclohexene were characterized at the ωB97X‐D/6‐31+g(d,p) level. The coupled cluster method, CCSD(T)/cc‐pVTZ, was employed to calculate the corresponding energies with the zero‐point energy corrections by the ωB97X‐D/6‐31+g(d,p) approach. Combining experimental and theoretical results, possible formation pathways of the fragment ions were proposed and discussed in detail. The retro‐Cope rearrangement was found to play a crucial role in the formation of C₄H₆⁺, C₄H₅⁺ and C₃H₅⁺. Intramolecular hydrogen migrations were observed as dominant processes in most of the fragmentation pathways of cyclohexene. The present research provides a clear picture of the photoionization and dissociation processes of cyclohexene in the 8‐ to 15.5‐eV photon energy region. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Dissociative Photoionization of 1,4-Dioxane with Tunable VUV Synchrotron Radiation

The photoionization and photodissociation of 1,4-dioxane have been investigated with a reflectron time-of-flight photoionization mass spectrometry and a tunable vacuum ultraviolet synchrotron radiation in the energy region of 8.0-15.5 eV. Parent ion and fragment ions at m/z 88, 87, 58, 57, 45, 44, 43, 41, 31, 30, 29, 28 and 15 are detected under supersonic conditions. The ionization energy of DX as well as the appearance energies of its fragment ions C₄H₇O₂⁺, C₃H₆O⁺, C₃H₅O⁺, C₂H₅O⁺, C₂H₄O⁺, C₂H₃O⁺, C₃H₅⁺, CH₃O⁺, C₂H₆⁺, C₂H₅⁺/CHO⁺, C₂H₄⁺ and CH₃⁺ was determined from their photoionization efficiency curves. The optimized structures for the neutrals, cations, transition states and intermediates related to photodissociation of DX are characterized at the B3LYP/6-31+G(d,p) level and their energies are obtained by G3B3 method. Possible dissociative channels of the DX are proposed based on comparison of experimental AE values and theoretical predicted ones. Intramolecular hydrogen migrations are found to be the dominant processes in most of the fragmentation pathways of 1,4-dioxane.     

Photofragmentation of Isoleucine by Vacuum Ultraviolet Photoionization

Vacuum ultraviolet photon-induced ionization and dissociation of isoleucine are investi-gated with synchrotron radiation photoionization mass spectroscopy and theoretical cal-culations. The main fragment ions at m/z=86, 75, 74, 69, 57, 46, 45, 44, 41, 30, 28, and 18 from isoleucine are observed in the mass spectrum at the photon energy of 13 eV. From the photoionization e±ciency curves, appearance energies for the principal fragment ions C₅H₁₂N⁺ (m/z=86)、C₂H₅NO₄⁺ (m/z=75)、C₅H₉⁺ (m/z=69)、C₄H₉⁺(m/z=57), and CH₄N⁺(m/z=30) are determined to be 8.84±0.07, 9.25±0.06, 10.20±0.12, 9.25±0.10, and 11.05±0.07 eV, respectively, and possible formation pathways are established in detail by the calculations at the B3LYP/6-31++G(d, p) levels. These proposed channels include simple bond cleavage reactions as well as reactions involving intermediates and transition structures. The experimental and computational appearance energies or barriers are in good agreement.     

VUV Photoionization and Dissociation of Tyramine and Dopamine: the Joint Experimental and Theoretical Studies

Photon induced dissociation investigations of neutral tyramine and dopamine are carried out with synchrotron vacuum ultraviolet photoionization mass spectrometry and theoretical calculations. At low photon energy, only molecular ions are measured by virtue of near-threshold photoionization. While increasing photon energy to 11.7 eV or more, four distinct fragment ions are obtained for tyramine and dopamine, respectively. Besides, the ioniza-tion energies of tyramine and dopamine are determined to be 7.98±0.05 and 7.67±0.05 eV by measuring the photoionization efficiency curves of corresponding molecular ions. With help of density function theory calculations, the detailed fragmentation pathways are es-tablished as well. These two molecular cations have similar aminoethyl group elimination pathways, C₇H₈O₂^+·(m/z=124) and C₇H₈O^+·(m/z=108) are supposed to be generated by the McLafferty rearrangement via γ-hydrogen (γ-H) shift inducing β-fission. And CH₂NH₂⁺ is proposed to derive from the direct fission of C7-C8 bond. Besides, the McLafferty rear-rangement and the C7-C8 bond fission are validated to be dominant dissociation pathways for tyramine and dopamine cations.     

A Photoionization study of some benzoyl compounds—Thermochemistry of [C7H5O]+ formation

Appearance energies for [C₇H₅O]⁺ fragment ions, formed from a variety of benzoyl compounds, have been measured by photon impact. The mean heat of formation calculated for [C₇H₅O]⁺ is 705 ± 6 kJ mol^?1, which can be correlated with either a single threshold structure or a mixture of structures with similar heats of formation. Previously observed variations of ΔH_f([C₇H₅O]⁺) with precursor molecule are shown to be consistent with a structure dependent kinetic shift, rather than the presence of isolated electronic states.     

Photoionization and Dissociation Study of 2-Methyl-2-propen-1-ol: Experimental and Theoretical Insights

The photoionization and dissociation of 2-methyl-2-propen-1-ol (MPO) have been investigated by using molecular beam experimental apparatus with tunable vacuum ultravioletsynchrotron radiation in the photon energy region of 8.0-15.5 eV. The photoionization efficiency (PIE) curves for molecule ion and fragment ions: C₄H₈O⁺、C₄H₇O⁺、C₃H₅O⁺、C₄H₇⁺、C₄H₆⁺、C₄H₅⁺、C₂H₄O⁺、C₂H₃O⁺、C₃H₆⁺、C₃H₅⁺、C₃H₃⁺、CH₃O⁺、CHO⁺ have been measured, and the ionization energy (IE) and the appearance energies (AEs) of the fragment ions have been obtained. The stable species and the first order saddle points have been calculated on the CCSD(T)/cc-pvTZ//B3LYP/6-31+G(d,p) level. With combination of theoretical and experimental results, the dissociative photoionization pathways of 2-methyl-2-propen-1-ol are proposed. Hydrogen migrations within the molecule are the dominant processes in most of the fragmentation pathways of MPO.     

Dissociative Photoionization of m-Xylene

The photoionization and dissociative photoionization of m-xylene (C₈H₁₀) were researched by using synchrotron radiation vacuum ultraviolet (SR-VUV) and supersonic expanding molecular beam reflectron time-of-flight mass spectrometer (RFTOF-MS) system. The photoionization efficiency spectra (PIEs) of parent ion C₈H₁₀⁺ and main fragment ions C₈H₉⁺ and C₇H₇⁺ were observed, and the ionization energy (IE) of m-xylene and appearance energies (AEs) of main fragment ions C₈H₉⁺ and C₇H₇⁺ were determined to be 8.60 ± 0.03 eV, 11.76 ± 0.04 eV and 11.85 ± 0.05 eV, respectively. Structures of reactant, transition states (TSs), intermediates (INTs), and products involved in two dominant dissociation channels were optimized at the B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) level, and the relative energies were calculated at the G3 level. Based on the results, two major dissociative photoionization channels, C₇H₇⁺+CH₃ and C₈H₉⁺+H were calculated at the B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) level. On the basis of theoretical and experimental results, the dissociative photoionization mechanisms of m-xylene were proposed. The C–H or C–C bond dissociation and hydrogen migration are the main processes in the dissociation channels of m-xylene cation.

     

Photoionization Mass Spectrometry: A Useful Method to Evaluate the Pyrolysis Process of Glycoside Flavor Precursor

The thermal decomposition behavior and the pyrolysis products of benzyl‐2,3,4,6‐tetra‐O‐acetyl‐β‐D‐glucopyranoside (BGLU) were studied with synchrotron vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) photoionization mass spectrometry at temperatures of 300, 500 and 700 °C at 0.062 Pa. Several pyrolysis products and intermediates were identified by the measurement of photoionization mass spectra at different photon energies. The results indicated that the primary decomposition reaction was the cleavage of O‐glycosidic bond of the glycoside at low temperature, proven by the discoveries of benzyloxy radical (m/z = 107) and glycon radical (m/z = 331) in mass spectra. As pyrolysis temperature increased from 300 to 700 °C, two possible pyrolytic modes were observed. This work reported an application of synchrotron VUV photoionization mass spectrometry in the study of the thermal decomposition of glycoside flavor precursor, which was expected to help understand the thermal decomposition mechanism of this type of compound. The possibility of this glycoside to be used as a flavor precursor in high temperature process was evaluated.     

二乙基锌的同步辐射真空紫外光电离光解离

利用同步辐射光源和反射式飞行时间质谱, 在超声冷却条件下对二乙基锌(ZnC4H10)进行真空紫外(VUV, 能量范围为8-22 eV)光电离光解离研究. 实验获得ZnC4H10的光电离质谱图; 通过测量各碎片离子的光电离效率(PIE)曲线, 获得ZnC4H10的电离势(IP=8.20±0.05 eV)及其碎片离子(ZnC2H5+、ZnH+、Zn+、C2H5+、C2H3+等)的出现势. 根据实验结果, 并结合相关文献所给的热力学数据, 推导出这些主要碎片离子的生成焓, 并分析它们可能的解离通道和主要离子的分支比. 结果表明, 其主要解离通道是母体离子发生Zn—C 键的断裂形成ZnC2H5+和C2H5+离子, ZnC2H5+离子再进一步解离形成Zn+离子, 并且含锌碎片离子的丰度占75%以上.     

In-beam electron impact mass spectrometry of aliphatic alcohols

The characteristics of the in-beam electron impact mass spectra of six isomers of undecanol as well as several 1-alkanols have been examined. In addition to the characteristic ions observed in the conventional electron impact spectra, the [2M+1]⁺, [2M+1-H₂O]⁺, [2M+1-2H₂O]⁺, [2M-R or R′]⁺, [2M-H₂O? R or R′]⁺, [2M? 2H₂O? R or R′]⁺ and [M+1? H₂O]⁺ peaks are common in the in-beam electron impact mass spectra of the undecanol isomers of structure RCH(OH)R′. Deuterium labelling experiments have shown that the extra proton in the protonated dimer ions, [2M+1]⁺, originates from the hydroxy group. The processes which produce the important peaks in the high m/e regions are discussed.     

FC(O)SNCO的电子结构和光电离解离过程

由于拥有―C(O)S―和―NCO基团, FC(O)SNCO的分子和电子结构是非常有趣的. 利用FC(O)SCl和AgNCO制备了FC(O)SNCO,并利用HeI光电子能谱(PES)、光电离质谱(PIMS)以及理论计算研究了其分子和电子结构. 通过将实验、理论计算以及自然键轨道(NBO)分析结合起来, 获得了FC(O)SNCO的最稳定分子构型. 利用外壳层格林函数(OVGF)方法以及与相似化合物的比较, 对其光电子能谱进行了指认. 理论计算表明,对于中性分子最稳定的构型为syn-syn非平面构型, 而电离后的离子最稳定构型为syn-syn平面构型. 实验结果表明, 第一电离能来自于S的孤对电子轨道, 为10.33 eV. 第二至第六电离能分别为12.03、13.23、13.77、14.78、15.99 eV, 并对这些电离能进行了指认. 在光电离质谱中产生了六个质谱峰, 分别为SN⁺、FC(O)⁺、SNCO⁺、FC(O)SN⁺、C(O)SNCO⁺、FC(O)SNCO^+·, 其中FC(O)SNCO^+·的峰是最强峰. 结合HeI光电子能谱和理论计算, 对PIMS进行了分析,并研究了可能的电离和解离过程并对其进行了讨论.     

Fragmentation mechanisms of oxidized peptides elucidated by SID, RRKM modeling, and molecular dynamics

The gas-phase fragmentation reactions of singly charged angiotensin II (AngII, DR⁺VYIHPF) and the ozonolysis products AngII+O (DR⁺VY*IHPF), AngII+3O (DR⁺VYIH*PF), and AngII+4O (DR⁺VY*IH*PF) were studied using SID FT-ICR mass spectrometry, RRKM modeling, and molecular dynamics. Oxidation of Tyr (AngII+O) leads to a low-energy charge-remote selective fragmentation channel resulting in the b ₄ +O fragment ion. Modification of His (AngII+3O and AngII+4O) leads to a series of new selective dissociation channels. For AngII+3O and AngII+4O, the formation of [MH+3O] ⁺ −45 and [MH+3O] ⁺ −71 are driven by charge-remote processes while it is suggested that b ₅ and [MH+3O] ⁺ −88 fragments are a result of charge-directed reactions. Energy-resolved SID experiments and RRKM modeling provide threshold energies and activation entropies for the lowest energy fragmentation channel for each of the parent ions. Fragmentation of the ozonolysis products was found to be controlled by entropic effects. Mechanisms are proposed for each of the new dissociation pathways based on the energies and entropies of activation and parent ion conformations sampled using molecular dynamics.     

Photoionization studies on various quinones by an infrared laser desorption/tunable VUV photoionization TOF mass spectrometry

Photoionization and dissociative photoionization characters of six quinones, including 1,2-naphthoquinone (1,2-NQ), 1,4-naphthoquinone (1,4-NQ), 9,10-phenanthroquinone (PQ), 9,10-anthraquinone (AQ), benz[a]- anthracene-7,12-dione (BAD) and 1,2-acenaphthylenedione (AND) have been studied with an infrared laser desorption/tunable synchrotron vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) photoionization mass spectrometry (IR LD/VUV PIMS) technique. Mass spectra of these compounds are obtained at different VUV photon energies. Consecutive losses of two carbon monoxide (CO) groups are found to be the main fragmentation pathways for all the quinones. Detailed dissociation processes are discussed with the help of ab initio B3LYP calculations. Ionization energies (IEs) of these quinones and appearance energies (AEs) of major fragments are obtained by measuring the photoionization efficiency (PIE) spectra. The experimental results are in good agreement with the theoretical data.     

Microplasma Discharge Vacuum Ultraviolet Photoionization Source for Atmospheric Pressure Ionization Mass Spectrometry

In this paper, we demonstrate the first use of an atmospheric pressure microplasma-based vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) photoionization source in atmospheric pressure mass spectrometry applications. The device is a robust, easy-to-operate microhollow cathode discharge (MHCD) that enables generation of VUV photons from Ne and Ne/H₂ gas mixtures. Photons were detected by excitation of a microchannel plate detector and by analysis of diagnostic sample ions using a mass spectrometer. Reactive ions, charged particles, and metastables produced in the discharge were blocked from entering the ionization region by means of a lithium fluoride window, and photoionization was performed in a nitrogen-purged environment. By reducing the output pressure of the MHCD, we observed heightened production of higher-energy photons, making the photoionization source more effective. The initial performance of the MHCD VUV source has been evaluated by ionizing model analytes such as acetone, azulene, benzene, dimethylaniline, and glycine, which were introduced in solid or liquid phase. These molecules represent species with both high and low proton affinities, and ionization energies ranging from 7.12 to 9.7 eV. Figure

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VUV photoionisation of free azabenzenes: Pyridine, pyrazine, pyrimidine, pyridazine and s-triazine

Photoionisation mass spectrometry was used to obtain the fragmentation pathways of pyridine, pyridazine, pyrimidine, pyrazine and s-triazine molecules upon absorption of 23.0, 15.7 and 13.8 eV synchrotron photons. The ionic fragments observed vary from molecule to molecule, however C₂H₂⁺, HCN⁺and HCNH⁺ are common to all five molecules at the three photon energies. Furthermore, the presence of C₂H₂N₂⁺, C₃H₃N⁺ and C₄H₄⁺ in the spectra of some of the molecules suggests dissociation pathways via loss of HCN moieties. The respective parent cations, m/q=79, 80 and 81 have a greater yield at low photon energies when compared to the most intense fragment peak in each spectra. We recorded two of the fragment cation yields, as well as the parent photoion yield curves of pyridine, pyridazine, and pyrimidine in the 8–30 eV range. The formation of abundant cation fragments show a strong propensity of the molecules for dissociation after the absorption of VUV photons higher than 14 eV. The differences in relative fragment yields from molecule to molecule, and when changing the excitation energy, suggest significant bond rearrangements and nuclear motion during the dissociation time. Thus, bond cleavage is dependent on the photon energy deposited in the molecule and on intramolecular reactivity. With the aid of photoion yield curves and energy estimations we have assigned major peaks in the spectra and discussed their fragmentation pathways.