Abstract
Abstract The decomposition of ethylbenzene sensitized by Hg(3P1) was studied in gas phase. Hydrogen, methane and ethane were obtained as the main gaseous products. Their rates of formation were determined as a function of the pressure of ethylbenzene or xenon. To decide whether methyl or ethyl radical is the primary product in the photolysis, ethylbenzene-β-d1 was photolyzed. It was concluded that methyl radical is the primary product, since methane-d1 and ehane-d2 were obtained as products. A probable reaction mechanism is proposed to interpret the effect of pressure and light intensity on the rate of formation of ethane and methane. It is suggested that a biphotonic process is involved, which can explain the fact that the rate of formation of ethane is proportional to the square of light intensity.
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