The reaction of OH with acetaldehyde and deuterated acetaldehyde: Further insight into the reaction mechanism at both low and elevated temperatures

The pulsed laser photolysis/laser‐induced fluorescence technique has been used to conduct additional measurements of the gas‐phase CH₃CHO + OH reaction. These measurements were conducted to verify the complex temperature dependence previously observed by the authors and to acquire mechanistic information about the reaction mechanism in the form of primary kinetic isotope effects. Primary kinetic isotope effect measurements at temperatures of 297, 383, 600, and 860 K indicate that H abstraction from the acetyl group dominates that of the methyl group at low to modest temperatures (?600 K) and H abstraction from the methyl group dominates that from the acetyl group at higher temperatures (860 K). A bi‐exponential © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 38: 489–495, 2006