Kinetics of reactions between methyl and acetyl radicals in gas phase produced by flash photolysis of acetic anhydride

The reaction products of photolysis of acetic anhydride in gas phase at 25°C, where He or CO₂ was present as buffer gas, were analyzed by gas chromatography. The extent of photodissociation was 52% ± 5% and the extent of intramolecular hydrogen transfer reaction producing acetic acid and ketene was 48% ± 5%. The rate constants of the hydrogen exchange and radical combination reactions between methyl and acetyl radicals were calculated from the amounts of products. The value of the ratio of the rate constants of hydrogen exchange and radical combination reactions between methyl and acetyl radicals, ??₇/??₆ = 0.15, indicates that acetyl radical is a relatively poor hydrogen donor. The corresponding ratio of rate constants for the reactions between two acetyl radicals, ??₉/??_s = 0.42, indicates that acetyl radical is a better hydrogen acceptor than methyl radical.     

Flash photolysis of biacetyl in gas phase. Rate constants of reactions between methyl and acetyl radicals

The flash photolysis of biacetyl produces CO, C₂H₆, and CH₃COCH₃ as main products, and in small amounts CO₂, C₂H₄, and CH₃CHO. The rate constants of reactions (2) and (3) of thermally equilibrated radicals were calculated from the amounts of products: .     

Kinetics of some reactions of vinyl and isopropyl radicals in the gas phase

Vinyl and isopropyl radicals were generated by the pyrolysis of azoisopropane in the presence of acrolein at 473–563 K. Reaction products were analyzed by gas chromatography. Rate constant ratios k₂/k₁ = 0.02 ± 0.01 and k₄/k₃ = 0.01 ± 0.005 are suggested for the following reactions: The rate constant ratio of reactions (7) and (c) obeys the Arrhenius equation The Arrhenius equation was derived for (k₈ + k₉).     

Trends in alkyl substituent effects on nucleophilic reactions of carbonyl compounds: gas phase reactions between amines and the methoxy methyl cation

The reactions of various amines (RNH(2); R = H, CH(3), C(2)H(5) and i-C(3)H(7)) with the methoxy methyl cation (CH(2)OCH(3)(+)) have been investigated using an FT-ICR mass spectrometer, and the experimental results are supplied with ab initio calculations. The amines show clear trends in their reactivities with variable degree of: 1) nucleophilic substitution, 2) addition-elimination and 3) hydride abstraction. In all cases addition-elimination dominates over nucleophilic substitution, and for R not equal H the observed reactions occur at the collisional limit. The potential energy profiles for all three reaction types correlate with the basicities of the amines; the more basic amine-the more favourable is the reaction; in other words: nucleophilicity follows basicity in the gas phase.     

Characterization of the methoxy carbonyl radical formed via photolysis of methyl chloroformate at 193.3 nm

This study investigates two features of interest in recent work on the photolytic production of the methoxy carbonyl radical and its subsequent unimolecular dissociation channels. Earlier studies used methyl chloroformate as a photolytic precursor for the CH3OCO, methoxy carbonyl (or methoxy formyl) radical, which is an intermediate in many reactions that are relevant to combustion and atmospheric chemistry. That work evidenced two competing C-Cl bond fission channels, tentatively assigning them as producing ground- and excited-state methoxy carbonyl radicals. In this study, we measure the photofragment angular distributions for each C-Cl bond fission channel and the spin-orbit state of the Cl atoms produced. The data shows bond fission leading to the production of ground-state methoxy carbonyl radicals with a high kinetic energy release and an angular distribution characterized by an anisotropy parameter, beta, of between 0.37 and 0.64. The bond fission that leads to the production of excited-state radicals, with a low kinetic energy release, has an angular distribution best described by a negative anisotropy parameter. The very different angular distributions suggest that two different excited states of methyl chloroformate lead to the formation of ground- and excited-state methoxy carbonyl products. Moreover, with these measurements we were able to refine the product branching fractions to 82% of the C-Cl bond fission resulting in ground-state radicals and 18% resulting in excited-state radicals. The maximum kinetic energy release of 12 kcal/mol measured for the channel producing excited-state radicals suggests that the adiabatic excitation energy of the radical is less than or equal to 55 kcal/mol, which is lower than the 67.8 kcal/mol calculated by UCCSD(T) methods in this study. The low-lying excited states of methylchloroformate are also considered here to understand the observed angular distributions. Finally, the mechanism for the unimolecular dissociation of the methoxy carbonyl radical to CH3 + CO2, which can occur through a transition state with either cis or, with a much higher barrier, trans geometry, was investigated with natural bond orbital computations. The results suggest donation of electron density from the nonbonding C radical orbital to the sigma* orbital of the breaking C-O bond accounts for the additional stability of the cis transition state.     

Mutual interactions of the methyl and methylperoxy radicals studied by flash photolysis and kinetic spectroscopy

The decadic extinction coefficient of the methyl radical at 216.4 nm and the rate constant for mutual combination were redetermined as: . The application of the Beer–Lambert law to these measurements was justified experimentally. The absorption spectrum of the methylperoxy radical was characterized as a weak, broad, structureless band, having a maximum at 240 nm with ?(240) = 1.55 × 10³ l./mol cm. The mutual interaction of methylperoxy radicals leads to the generation of methoxy and hydroperoxy radicals as a consequence of the nonterminating interaction . Each derivative radical may consume a significant fraction of the methylperoxy radicals, and either of these cross interactions may be made predominant by a suitable choice of oxygen pressure. The mutual interaction was studied under both conditions. The overall mechanism was analyzed by a precise computational method, and the rate constant of the total mutual interaction was estimated as .     

Determination of rate constants for some reactions of CBr radicals by VUV laser flash photolysis

The CBr radical has been produced by VUV laser flash photolysis of CHBr₃ and absolute rate constants for reactions with O₂, CO₂ and N₂ have been measured. The possible mechanisms of these reactions have been discussed.     

The flash photolysis of azomethane. Minor products from the photolysis of methyl radicals and a rate constant for CH3 + NO

The flash photolysis of azomethane in a quartz reaction vessel produces mainly ethane (>75%) plus smaller quantities of methane, ethylene, and acetylene. The minor products are interpreted quantitatively in terms of methyl radical photolysis at 216 nm to give CH₂ and H. This interpretation is substantiated by the dependence of the minor products on flash intensity. The reduction of the ethane yield on adding NO is employed to obtain a rate constant for CH₃ + NO as a function of total pressure, based on a value for methyl radical recombination of 4.2 × 10^?11 cm³/molec · sec. An RRKM analysis is used to extrapolate the data to give a limiting high-pressure rate constant for CH₃ + NO of (1.2 ± 0.1) × 10^?11 cm³/molec · sec at 298°K.     

Pulse radiolysis study of reactions of alkyl and alkylperoxy radicals originating from methyl tert-butyl ether in the gas phase

UV spectra and kinetics for the reactions of alkyl and alkylperoxy radicals from methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) were studied in 1 atm of SF₆ by the pulse radiolysis-UV absorption technique. UV spectra for the radical mixtures were quantified from 215 to 340 nm. At 240 nm. σ_R = (2.6 ± 0.4) × 10⁻¹⁸ cm² molecule⁻¹ and σ_RO2 = (4.1 ± 0.6) × 10⁻¹⁸ cm² molecule⁻¹ (base e). The rate constant for the self-reaction of the alkyl radicals is (2.5 ± 1.1) × 10⁻¹¹ cm³ molecule⁻¹ s⁻¹. The rate constants for reaction of the alkyl radicals with molecular oxygen and the alkylperoxy radicals with NO and NO₂ are (9.1 ± 1.5) × 10⁻¹³, (4.3 ± 1.6) × 10⁻¹² and (1.2 ± 0.3) × 10⁻¹¹ cm³ molecule⁻¹ s⁻¹, respectively. The rate constants given above refer to reaction at the tert-butyl side of the molecule.     

Disproportionation reactions between CF2H and C2H5 radicals in the gas phase

The disproportionation and combination reactions between CF₂H and C₂H₅ radicals have been studied in the gas phase from room temperature to 70°C. For the pathway which yields CF₂H₂ + C₂H₄, relative to CF₂HC₂H₅, Δ = 0.072 ± 0.019. The competing reaction channel that produces CF₂ + C₂H₆ is approximately four times as efficient, with Δ = 0.265 ± 0.038. With CF₂D radicals an isotope effect for the CF₂ + C₂H₅D reaction pathway was observed with Δ ? 0.2.     

Kinetics and mechanism of reactions between aromatic olefins and hydroxyl radicals

The rates of the reactions of hydroxyl radicals (OH) with styrene, α-methylstyrene, and β-methylstyrene have been measured by irradiating mixtures of these aromatic olefins and NO in an environmental chamber at 298 K. Experimental conditions were used whereby the competition of ozone with OH in oxidizing the hydrocarbons could be considered negligible. The rate constant values, obtained by a relative method using isooctane as reference hydrocarbon, are: styrene (5.3 ± 0.5) × 10^?11 cm³/molec·s, α-methylstyrene (5.3 ± 0.6) × 10^?11 cm³/molec·s, and β-methylstyrene (6.0 ± 0.6) × 10^?11 cm³/molec·s. A simplified kinetic treatment of the experimental data shows that styrene and β-methylstyrene are stoichiometrically converted to benzaldehyde, suggesting that OH attack occurs only on the aliphatic moiety of the aromatic olefins. Benzaldehyde was observed to undergo consecutive oxidation by OH, and its maximum formation yield was about 60%. A reaction mechanism is proposed where the primary rate-determining OH attack leads to the formation of 1-hydroxy-2-phenyl-2-ethenyl radicals, from which benzaldehyde is formed through fast intermediate reactions.     

Role of radiolytically formed protonating agents in gas phase competitive reactions

Radiolytically formed O₂H⁺, N₂H⁺, and CO₂H⁺ ions were allowed to react with gaseous p-cymene. Dealkylation and isomerization reactions were observed with O₂H⁺ and N₂H⁺ ions, while only the first process occurred when CO₂H⁺ ions were employed. The results show that dealkylation is favored with respect to isomerization as the protonation exothermicity decreases.     

Kinetics of reactions between arylnitroso oxides and methyl vinyl ketone

The kinetics of the reactions of phenylnitroso oxide, (4-methylphenyl)nitroso oxide, (4-methoxyphenyl) nitroso oxide, 4-(N, N -dimethylamino)phenylnitroso oxide, (4-chlorophenyl)nitroso oxide, (4-bromophenyl) nitroso oxide, and (4-nitropenyl)nitroso oxide with methyl vinyl ketone in acetonitrile at 295 K was studied. With the use of 4-CH₃O-C₆H₄-NOO as an example, it was found that only the trans isomers of nitroso oxides entered into the reaction. The rate constants of the reactions of the trans isomers of nitroso oxides with methyl vinyl ketone were measured. A linear correlation between the logarithms of reaction rate constants and the electronic properties of substituents in the aromatic rings of nitroso oxides on the Hammett scale was established: ρ = 1.11 ± 0.08; r = 0.990.     

Kinetics, mechanism, and thermochemistry of the gas phase reaction of atomic chlorine with dimethyl sulfoxide

A laser flash photolysis-resonance fluorescence technique has been employed to study the kinetics of the reaction of chlorine atoms with dimethyl sulfoxide (CH3S(O)CH3; DMSO) as a function of temperature (270-571 K) and pressure (5-500 Torr) in nitrogen bath gas. At T = 296 K and P > or = 5 Torr, measured rate coefficients increase with increasing pressure. Combining our data with literature values for low-pressure rate coefficients (0.5-3 Torr He) leads to a rate coefficient for the pressure independent H-transfer channel of k1a = 1.45 x 10(-11) cm3 molecule(-1) s(-1) and the following falloff parameters for the pressure-dependent addition channel in N2 bath gas: k(1b,0) = 2.53 x 10(-28) cm6 molecule(-2) s(-1); k(1b,infinity) = 1.17 x 10(-10) cm3 molecule(-1) s(-1), F(c) = 0.503. At the 95% confidence level, both k1a and k1b(P) have estimated accuracies of +/-30%. At T > 430 K, where adduct decomposition is fast enough that only the H-transfer pathway is important, measured rate coefficients are independent of pressure (30-100 Torr N2) and increase with increasing temperature. The following Arrhenius expression adequately describes the temperature dependence of the rate coefficients measured at over the range 438-571 K: k1a = (4.6 +/- 0.4) x 10(-11) exp[-(472 +/- 40)/T) cm3 molecule(-1) s(-1) (uncertainties are 2sigma, precision only). When our data at T > 430 K are combined with values for k1a at temperatures of 273-335 K that are obtained by correcting reported low-pressure rate coefficients from discharge flow studies to remove the contribution from the pressure-dependent channel, the following modified Arrhenius expression best describes the derived temperature dependence: k1a = 1.34 x 10(-15)T(1.40) exp(+383/T) cm3 molecule(-1) s(-1) (273 K < or = T < or = 571 K). At temperatures around 330 K, reversible addition is observed, thus allowing equilibrium constants for Cl-DMSO formation and dissociation to be determined. A third-law analysis of the equilibrium data using structural information obtained from electronic structure calculations leads to the following thermochemical parameters for the association reaction: delta(r)H(o)298 = -72.8 +/- 2.9 kJ mol(-1), deltaH(o)0 = -71.5 +/- 3.3 kJ mol(-1), and delta(r)S(o)298 = -110.6 +/- 4.0 J K(-1) mol(-1). In conjunction with standard enthalpies of formation of Cl and DMSO taken from the literature, the above values for delta(r)H(o) lead to the following values for the standard enthalpy of formation of Cl-DMSO: delta(f)H(o)298 = -102.7 +/- 4.9 kJ mol(-1) and delta(r)H(o)0 = -84.4 +/- 5.8 kJ mol(-1). Uncertainties in the above thermochemical parameters represent estimated accuracy at the 95% confidence level. In agreement with one published theoretical study, electronic structure calculations using density functional theory and G3B3 theory reproduce the experimental adduct bond strength quite well.     

Kinetics of gas-phase addition reactions of methyl radicals. I. Addition to ethylene,acetylene, and benzene

The reactions have been studied by a mass-balance method involving the photolysis of small amounts of biacetyl in the presence of a large excess of isobutane containing a small proportion of the unsaturated substrate. The following Arrhenius parameters have been derived:

Laser flash photolysis studies of elementary reactions of significance in combustion

Recent measurements of radical-radical and radical-atom rate coefficients and of the heats of formation of ethyl and t-butyl radicals are discussed, in the context of the provision of rate data for elementary reactions of importance in combustion and pyrolysis.