Nature of the absorbing species from pulse radiolysis of n-hexane

Abstract

The results of picosecond pulse radiolysis studies of n-hexane at 213 K over the wavelength region of 450 and 750 nm are presented. Scavengers were used to determine the charge of the absorbing species. It was found that scavengers, typically thought of as electron scavengers, e.g. ethyl bromide, carbon disulfide and ethyl iodide, can also act as hole scavengers in n-hexane at early times. The optical absorption of solutions of these scavengers was at least partially due to a positive scavenger ion rather than the n-hexyl ion. Preliminary evidence indicated that the the absorbing species at 600 nm might be an excited state. There was also evidence from comparative studies of n-hexane and n-decane at room temperature that the absorption at 480 nm was partially due to the positive n-hexyl ion.