I. A study of vibrational relaxation in carbon monoxide by shock-waves and infra-red emission. II. A study of the effect of a resonant transfer of energy on the vibrational relaxation of gas mixtures

Abstract

I: Pure CO gas was rapidly heated by the passage of a shock wave, and the vibrational relaxation time determined from measurements of the time history of the intensity of the 1st overtone transition at 2.35[microns]. The relaxation time was measured over a temperature range of 1400-3000°K and at pressures from 1 1/2 - 4 atmospheres. At 1400°K and 1 atm. a value of 650 ± 50 [micro]sec. was obtained. A large was discovered and is believed to be caused by traces of water vapor. II: The of an efficient, near-resonant exchange of vibration energy between O2 and N2 molecules on the vibration relaxation behavior was investigated. The near-resonant and non-resonant vibrations transition probabilities were estimated from current theory. It was shown that the resonant process can provide a catalytic path for the rapid vibrational relaxation of the slower component (N2). The hypothetical calculations are compared with experiment, and interpretation of the impurity effect of H2O is given in terms of a resonant process.