High-vacuum pyrolysis of 1,1,1-trifluoro-2-bromo-2-chloroethane. IR spectrum of 1,1,1-trifluoro-2-chloroethyl radical in an argon matrix

The products of high-vacuum pyrolysis of 1,1,1-trifluoro-2-bromo-2-chloroethane were studied by matrix IR spectroscopy. The decomposition of 1,1,1-trifluoro-2-bromo-2-chloroethane was shown to occur predominantlyvia two directions: to form the 1,1,1-trifluoro-2-chloroethyl radical and trifluoromethylcarbene isomerizing to trifluoroethylene. The CF₃CHCl radical has been detected in the matrix for the first time. The bands observed in the IR spectrum were calculated by the quantum-chemical B3LYP/6-311 G(d,p) method and assigned to normal vibrations of the radical. Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 10, pp. 2085–2088, October, 1998.