Formation of OH radicals in the gas-phase reaction of propene, isobutene, and isoprene with O{sub 3}: Yields and mechanistic implications
The gas-phase reaction of ozone with alkenes is one of the very few reactions of atmospheric interest that are initiated without free radicals. This tropospheric oxidation pathway for unsaturated compounds has received considerable attention because of the reported formation of OH radicals. OH radicals originating from the alkene-ozone reaction have been proposed as a relevant source of OH radicals in the lower troposphere. Since the reported yields of OH radicals differ considerably, the authors redetermined the OH radical yield for three terminal alkenes by performing a series of pseudo-first-order experiments. Ozonolysis studies were carried out under excess ozone conditions in the presence of different cyclohexane concentrations. The decay rate of the alkene ({kappa}{sub obs}) was followed by long-path FTIR spectroscopy. From the decrease of the effective rate constant ({kappa}{sub obs} = {kappa}{sub eff}[O{sub 3}]) upon addition of cyclohexane, the OH radical yield was determined. The OH radical yields were found to be independent of the concentration of reactants for the Criegee intermediates, which are formed in ozonolysis systems. From these results the authors conclude that OH radicals are formed in a unimolecular process, presumably from the decomposition of the excited Criegee intermediate. Determined yields of OH radical formation in the ozonolysis of propene, isobutene, and isoprene were 0.34, 0.60, and 0.26, respectively. Detailed product studies were performed to verify if the observed stable products can be explained by the assumption that OH radicals are formed via the hydroperoxide channel as proposed by Niki et al. For the isobutene-ozone system, experimental product yields were found to agree well with predictions from a chemical mechanism based on the chemistry of the acetonylperoxy radical CH{sub 3}C(O)CH{sub 2}O{sub 2}, which is formed as an important radical product from the decomposition of the (CH{sub 3}){sub 2}COO Criegee intermediate.
- Research Organization:
- Max-Planck-Inst. fuer Chemie, Mainz (DE)
- OSTI ID:
- 20003227
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Physical Chemistry A: Molecules, Spectroscopy, Kinetics, Environment, amp General Theory, Vol. 103, Issue 45; Other Information: PBD: 11 Nov 1999
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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