Temperature Dependence Of Rate Constants Research Articles

H-atom abstraction reactions of C1-C4 alkanes by ketenyl radical: Kinetic investigation and analysis

The kinetics of 16 H-atom abstraction reactions of C1-C4 alkanes by ketenyl radical (HCCO) are studied to enhance the existing combustion mechanisms. Firstly, the obtain the lowest-energy conformer, vibration frequencies and single point energies for the reactants, prepolymers, transition states, and products are determined using the CCSD(T)/cc-pVQZ//B3LYP/6-311G+(d,p) theory level. Subsequently, temperature-dependent reaction rate constants for the major channels are predicted by the TST method. Finally, the H-atom abstraction reactions are validated under multiple temperature conditions, and the effects of the reactions on auto-ignition process and CO emission characteristics of n-heptane/NG mixture are researched. The results indicate that the H-atom abstraction reactions by Cα-atom play a significant role for the diesel/NG combustion. To combine the reaction pathways and rate constants into the existing kinetic mechanisms resulted in more accurate predictions of the ignition delay time. Furthermore, these kinetics data are valuable for revealing the CO emissions of the dual-fuel engines.

Analysis of the Thermal Aging Kinetics of Tallow, Chicken Oil, Lard, and Sheep Oil.

Understanding the thermal aging kinetics of animal oils is of vital importance in the storage and applications of animal oils. In this work, we use four different techniques, including UV-Vis spectrometry, viscometry, impedance spectroscopy, and acid-base titration, to study the thermal aging kinetics of tallow, chicken oil, lard, and sheep oil in the temperature range from 120 °C to 180 °C. The evolutions of the UV-Vis absorbance, dynamic viscosity, electric impedance, and acid titration are discussed with the defect kinetics. The evolutions of the color centers, defects for dynamic viscosity, and electric dipoles follow second-order, first-order, and zero-order kinetics, respectively. The temperature dependence of rate constants for the evolutions of the UV-Vis absorbance, dynamic viscosity, electric impedance, and acid titration satisfies the Arrhenius equation with the same activation energy for individual animal oils. The activation energies are ~43.1, ~23.8, ~39.1, and ~37.5 kJ/mol for tallow, chicken oil, lard, and sheep oil, respectively. The thermal aging kinetics of the animal oils are attributed to the oxidation of triglycerides.

Predicting Nonradiative Decay Rate Constants of Cyclometalated Ir(III) Complexes.

The theoretical calculation of the temperature-dependent nonradiative decay rate constant is fundamental for predicting the usefulness of transition-metal complexes for technological applications. Such a computation implies the determination of the barriers separating the emitting triplet state from metal-centered states, which are key mediators of this type of radiationless relaxation. We here do so for the two green-emitting cyclometalated Ir(III) complexes, [Ir(ppy)2(pyim)]+ and [Ir(diFppy)2(dtb-bpy)]+, of general formula [Ir(C∧N)2(N∧N)]+, performing DFT calculations with both B3LYP and PBE0 functionals. On the basis of the obtained results and the comparison with the experimental nonradiative decay rate constants, we conclude that B3LYP provides too low energy barriers to the metal-centered states, while the PBE0 provides reasonable values. We consequently recommend to avoid the use of the commonly employed B3LYP functional for the evaluation of such an energy barrier for cyclometalated Ir(III) complexes.

Nanometer-resolution tracking of single cargo reveals dynein motor mechanisms.

Cytoplasmic dynein is essential for intracellular transport. Despite extensive in vitro characterizations, how the dynein motors transport vesicles by processive steps in live cells remains unclear. To dissect the molecular mechanisms of dynein, we develop optical probes that enable long-term single-particle tracking in live cells with high spatiotemporal resolution. We find that the number of active dynein motors transporting cargo switches stochastically between one and five dynein motors during long-range transport in neuronal axons. Our very bright optical probes allow the observation of individual molecular steps. Strikingly, these measurements reveal that the dwell times between steps are controlled by two temperature-dependent rate constants in which two ATP molecules are hydrolyzed sequentially during each dynein step. Thus, our observations uncover a previously unknown chemomechanical cycle of dynein-mediated cargo transport in living cells.

Master equation modeling of blackbody infrared radiative dissociation (BIRD) of hydrated peroxycarbonate radical anions.

Molecular cluster ions, which are stored in an electromagnetic trap under ultra-high vacuum conditions, undergo blackbody infrared radiative dissociation (BIRD). This process can be simulated with master equation modeling (MEM), predicting temperature-dependent dissociation rate constants, which are very sensitive to the dissociation energy. We have recently introduced a multiple-well approach for master equation modeling, where several low-lying isomers are taken into account. Here, we experimentally measure the BIRD of CO4●-(H2O)1,2 and model the results with a slightly modified multiple-well MEM. In the experiment, we exclusively observe loss of water from CO4●-(H2O), while the BIRD of CO4●-(H2O)2 leads predominantly to loss of carbon dioxide, with water loss occurring to a lesser extent. The MEM of two competing reactions requires empirical scaling factors for infrared intensities and the sum of states of the loose transition states employed in the calculation of unimolecular rate constants so that the simulated branching ratio matches the experiment. The experimentally derived binding energies are ΔH0(CO4●--H2O) = 45 ± 3kJ/mol, ΔH0(CO4●-(H2O)-H2O) = 41 ± 3kJ/mol, and ΔH0(CO2-O2●-(H2O)2) = 37 ± 3kJ/mol. Quantum chemical calculations on the CCSD(T)/aug-cc-pVTZ//CCSD/aug-cc-pVDZ level, corrected for the basis set superposition error, yield binding energies that are 2-5kJ/mol higher than experiment, within error limits of both experiment and theory. The relative activation energies for the two competing loss channels are as well fully consistent with theory.

A fast uncertainty quantification methodology and sampling technique for joint probability distribution of the Arrhenius rate expression: a case study applied to H2/CO kinetic mechanism

This work proposes a fast, novel, mathematically robust, and elegant unconstrained Method of Uncertainty Quantification (MUQ) for the temperature-dependent Arrhenius rate constant using Cholesky Decomposition (CD) of the covariance matrix of the Arrhenius parameters. The Arrhenius parameters of a reaction are treated as normally distributed correlated random variables. The MUQ method lends itself to an approach for Sampling of Arrhenius Curves (SAC), which automatically ensures that the generated samples are consistent with the distribution of Arrhenius parameters. The Method of Uncertainty Quantification and Sampling of Arrhenius Curves (MUQ-SAC) is used to train a quadratic polynomial response surface (PRS). Three important classes of Arrhenius curves possible within the SAC method are identified. From the total set of targets, a small subset of targets is first used to study the combinations of different classes of Arrhenius curves and their proportions within the design matrix, which is used to train PRS. Based on this understanding, response surfaces are generated for 64 ignition delay targets (Tig), which comprises of a wide range of pressure (P: 1--32.7 atm), temperature (T: 916-DIFadd-2869 K), and equivalence ratio (ϕ: 0.5--6.11), as well as for 74 laminar flame speed targets (Fls), spanning P: 1--25 atm, T: 285--600 K, and ϕ: 0.6--5. The H 2 /CO sub-mechanism of FFCM1.0 is chosen for the case study in which 22 reactions (66 Arrhenius parameters) are considered active parameters. The quality of the generated PRS is measured using the relative Maximum Residual Error (MRE). The quality of PRS is also checked against the search iterations encountered during mechanism optimisation. Accurate PRS could be generated over the search iterations, validating that the SAC method is able to span the entire uncertainty domain while training the PRS. The implementation of the MUQ-SAC method is made available at https://github.com/KrunalPanchal1995/MUQ-SAC.git.

Theoretical study on low-temperature oxidation kinetics of methyl pentanoate

In order to develop reliable combustion models of biodiesel, the low-temperature oxidation kinetics of methyl pentanoate (MP), the smallest methyl ester with the negative temperature coefficient (NTC), is theoretically investigated. We use the DLPNO-CCSD(T)/CBS(T-Q)//M06-2X/cc-pVTZ and CASPT2/CBS(T-Q)//CASSCF(7e,5o)/cc-pVTZ methods to explore the potential energy surfaces (PESs) of the decomposition of different MP peroxy radicals, including dissociation, isomerization, and concerted HO2 elimination. Comparisons among the PESs of MP and other methyl esters reveal that the ester functional group inherently affects the low-temperature oxidation kinetics of methyl esters, and the energies of the species along the PESs are closely related to the active C site and the alkyl chain length. Based on the determined PESs, the pressure- and temperature-dependent rate constants for the low-temperature oxidation of MP are computed at 298−1200 K and 0.01−100 atm. The kinetic calculations suggest that the dissociation rate constants of different methyl ester peroxy radicals are similar at the same active C site, and the channels that lead to tri-molecular products are significant during the low-temperature oxidation of large methyl esters. The literature combustion model of MP is revised with our calculations. For the first time, the NTC behavior of MP is theoretically predicted by the revised model, and an excellent agreement between the predictions and the measurements reflects the reliability of the present low-temperature oxidation subset of MP.Novelty and Significance statementMethyl pentanoate (MP) is the smallest methyl ester with the negative temperature coefficient (NTC), but the low-temperature oxidation kinetics in the available combustion model of MP is still insufficient to interpret its NTC behavior. To develop a reliable combustion model for MP, the potential energy surfaces (PESs) of the decompositions of different MP peroxy radicals are investigated. Results show that the ester functional group inherently affects the low-temperature oxidation kinetics of methyl esters, and the energies of the species along the PESs are closely related to the active C site and the alkyl chain length. With our calculated rate constants, the literature combustion model is revised. For the first time, the NTC behavior of MP is theoretically predicted by the revised model, and an excellent agreement between the predictions and the measurements reflects the reliability of the present low-temperature oxidation subset of MP.

A comprehensive experimental and kinetic modeling study of methyl tert-butyl ether combustion

A comprehensive understanding of the combustion chemistry of methyl tert‑butyl ether (MTBE) is of key importance in its application as an additive in gasoline fuels. Ignition delay times (IDTs) of MTBE/air mixtures have been measured in both a high-pressure shock tube (HPST) and in a rapid compression machine (RCM) at equivalence ratios of 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 in air, at pressures of 10 and 30 bar over the temperature range 600 – 1350 K. Species profiles for MTBE oxidation were obtained in a jet-stirred reactor (JSR) at 1 bar, at equivalence ratios of 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 in the temperature range 700 – 1100 K.A detailed reaction mechanism, comprising 813 species and 4319 reactions, has been developed and predicts well all of the experimental data obtained in this work and also texisitng literature data. Pressure- and temperature-dependent rate constants for the MTBE unimolecular elimination reaction producing isobutene and methanol were calculated using high-level ab-initio calculations. A sensitivity analysis reveals that this elimination reaction is important, and significantly inhibits fuel reactivity at temperatures above 1300 K. At intermediate temperatures (850 – 1300 K), the reaction MTBE + ȮH = TĊ4H8OCH3 + H2O plays a crucial role in promoting the reactivity of MTBE oxidation, whereas the reaction MTBE + ȮH = TC4H9OĊH2 + H2O is the most inhibiting reaction. At low temperatures (600 – 850 K), the isomerization reaction of TC4OCȮ2–1 ⇌ TĊ4OCO2H-2 significantly promotes the reactivity. Conversely, the reaction 2TC4OCȮ2–1 ↔ 2TC4OCȮ-1 + O2 inhibits reactivity the most. The NTC behavior in MTBE oxidation can be explained by the competition between the reactions involving the formation and consumption of cyclic ethers from TĊ4H8OCH3 radicals and the reactions associated with the formation and consumption of carbonyl hydroperoxide species.

On the decomposition mechanism of propanal: rate constants evaluation and kinetic simulations

The reactivity of aldehydes has been the subject of considerable interest in chemical kinetics, with propanal often chosen as the representative species. Despite its relevance, the reactivity of propanal is currently estimated from analogy and fitting of experimental data measured in limited temperature and pressure ranges, while the few literature theoretical studies have focused more on the exploration the potential energy surface (PES) than on the estimation of rate constants. The purpose of this work is to reinvestigate the propanal decomposition kinetics using the ab initio transition state theory based master equation approach with the intent of: (1) Determining accurate rate constants of key reaction channels; (2) Updating and validating an existing kinetic model by simulating available experimental data on propanal pyrolysis. It is found that propanal decomposition at the initial stages of pyrolysis occurs through four unimolecular barrierless reactions to form CHO + C2H5, CH2CHO + CH3, CH3CHCHO + H, and CH3CH2CO + H, and a termolecular pathway leading to the formation of C2H4 + CO + H2. High pressure rate constants were determined for each barrierless reaction channel using Variable Reaction Coordinate Transition State Theory and used to estimate phenomenological temperature and pressure dependent channel specific rate constants integrating the 1 dimensional master equation over the whole PES. The decomposition rate constants so determined are in agreement with the few available experimental data and significantly faster than previous literature estimates. The estimated kinetic parameters were finally implemented into the CRECK kinetic mechanism, leading to an improved agreement with shock tube pyrolysis data from the literature.

Kinetics for the reaction of Criegee intermediate CH2OO with n-butyraldehyde and its atmospheric implications

The Criegee intermediates (CIs), formed through ozone oxidation of unsaturated hydrocarbons, can undergo reactions with various carbonyl compounds in the atmosphere. In this study, we have investigated the 1,3-cycloaddition reaction of n-butyraldehyde with the simplest Criegee intermediate, CH2OO, using the OH laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) method. The experiments were conducted over a temperature and pressure range of 283–318 K and 5–100 Torr, respectively. Our results reveal that the bimolecular rate constant of the reaction is dependent on both temperature and pressure. Specifically, the measured rate constants at 100 Torr are (3.51 ± 0.63), (2.97 ± 0.53), (2.70 ± 0.49), and (2.52 ± 0.45) × 10−12 cm3 molecule−1 s−1 at temperatures of 283, 298, 308, and 318 K, respectively, with a total error of 18%. By fitting the pressure-dependent rate constants according to the Lindemann mechanism, we obtained a high-pressure limit rate constant of (3.05 ± 0.55) × 10−12 cm3 molecule−1 s−1 at 298 K. The Arrhenius plot of the temperature-dependent rate constants yields an activation energy of (−1.71 ± 0.30) kcal mol−1 and a pre-exponential factor of (1.66 ± 0.24) × 10−13 cm−3 s−1 (total error). Furthermore, our findings indicate that the title reaction exhibits a more pronounced temperature-dependent effect compared to that of CH2OO with water dimer and SO2, as well as that of OH with n-butyraldehyde. This observation suggests that the significance of title reaction in the atmosphere increases at lower temperature.

Mechanism of Interaction between Ammonium Perchlorate and Aluminum.

There is an interactive effect between ammonium perchlorate (AP) and aluminum (Al) powder during the combustion process of composite solid propellants, but the mechanism of this effect is still lacking. Using quantum chemical methods, we investigated this mechanism from a molecular perspective. The interaction process between Al and AP was analyzed by comparing the chemical bond changes between the atoms during the reaction process of the Al/AP system and the AP unimolecular thermal decomposition system. The results show that Al atoms alter the reaction mechanism of AP thermal decomposition, significantly decreasing the activation energy of AP decomposition at high temperature but increasing that at low temperature. Meanwhile, the temperature-dependent rate constant of each basic reaction was calculated by transition state theory. The rate constants increase with temperature. Under high temperature and pressure, Al can increase the high-temperature decomposition rate of AP by up to 1-3 orders of magnitude.

Oxidation of norbornadiene: Theoretical investigation on H-atom abstraction and related radical decomposition reactions

The chemical kinetics of hydrogen atom (H-atom) abstraction reactions from norbornadiene (NBD) by five radicals (H, O(3P), OH, CH3, and HO2), and the unimolecular reactions of three NBD derived radicals, were studied through high-level ab-initio calculations. The geometries optimization and vibrational frequencies calculation for all the reactants, transition states, and products were obtained at the M06-2X/6-311++G(d,p) level of theory. The zero-point energy (ZPE) corrected potential energy surfaces (PESs) were determined at the QCISD(T)/cc-pVDZ, TZ level of theory with basis set corrections from MP2/cc-pVDZ, TZ, QZ methods for single point energy calculations. Conventional transition state theory (TST) was used for the rate constants calculations of H-atom abstraction reactions by five radicals (H, O(3P), OH, CH3, and HO2) at temperatures from 298.15 to 2000 K, while the α-site H-atom abstraction reaction rate constant of NBD by OH radical has been obtained through variational transition state theory (VTST). The results show that the H-atom abstraction reactions from the α-carbon atom of NBD are the most critical channels at low temperatures. Total rate constants for H-atom abstraction reactions by OH radical are also the fastest among all of the reaction channels investigated at the temperature range from 298.15 to 2000 K. Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel-Marcus/Master Equation (RRKM/ME) has been used to calculate the pressure- and temperature-dependent rate constants for the unimolecular reactions of three related C7H7 product radicals which generated from H-atom abstraction reaction within temperature ranges of 300–2000 K and pressures of 0.01–100 atm. A combination of composite methods has been used to calculate the temperature-dependent thermochemical properties of NBD and related radicals. All the calculated kinetics and thermochemistry data can be utilized in the model development for NBD oxidation.

Nanometer-resolution long-term tracking of single cargos reveals dynein motor mechanisms.

Cytoplasmic dynein is essential for intracellular transport. Despite extensive in vitro characterizations, how the dynein motors work collectively to transport vesicles and how they step in live cells remains elusive because of the much faster speed of dynein under physiological conditions. To dissect the molecular mechanism and dynamics of dynein, we developed novel optical probes which enabled long-term single particle tracking with high spatiotemporal resolutions. We found that the number of active dynein motors transporting the cargo switched stochastically from one to five pairs during the long-range transport. Our very bright optical probes allowed the observation of individual molecular steps. The dwell time between steps was found to be described by two equal and temperature-dependent rate constants. This finding suggests that two ATP molecules were hydrolyzed sequentially during each dynein step. Our observations shed new light on the chemomechanical cycle of dynein in living cells.

Temperature and pressure dependent rate constants of the reactions of OH• with cyclopentene from variational TST and SS-QRRK methods.

In this work, the pressure- and temperature-dependent reaction rate constants for the hydrogen abstraction and addition of hydroxyl radicals to the unsaturated cyclopentene were studied. Geometries and vibrational frequencies of reactants, products, and transition states were calculated using density functional theory, with single-point energy corrections determined at the domain-based local pair natural orbital-coupled-cluster single double triple/cc-pVTZ-F12 level. The high-pressure limit rate constants were calculated using the canonical variational transition state theory with the small-curvature tunneling approximation. The vibrational partition functions were corrected by the effects of torsional and ring-puckering anharmonicities of the transition states and cyclopentene, respectively. Variational effects are shown to be relevant for all the hydrogen abstraction reactions. The increasing of the rate constants by tunneling is significant at temperatures below 500K. The pressure dependence on the rate constants of the addition of OH• to cyclopentene was calculated using the system-specific quantum Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel model. The high-pressure limit rate constants decrease with increasing temperature in the range 250-1000K. The falloff behavior was studied at several temperatures with pressures varying between 10-3 and 103 bar. At temperatures below 500K, the effect of the pressure on the addition rate constant is very modest. However, at temperatures around and above 1000K, taking pressure into account is mandatory for an accurate rate constant calculation. Branching ratio analyses reveal that the addition reaction dominates at temperatures below 500K, decreasing rapidly at higher temperatures. Arrhenius parameters are provided for all reactions and pressure dependent Arrhenius parameters are given for the addition of OH• to cyclopentene.

Temperature- and pH- Dependent OH Radical Reaction Kinetics of Tartaric and Mucic Acids in the Aqueous Phase.

Tartaric acid and mucic acid are dicarboxylic acids (DCAs), a substance class often found in atmospheric aerosols and cloud droplets. The hydroxyl radical (•OH)-induced oxidation in the aqueous phase is known to be an important loss process of organic compounds such as DCAs. However, the study of •OH kinetics of DCAs in the aqueous phase is still incomplete. In the present study, the rate constants of the •OH reactions of tartaric acid and mucic acid in the aqueous phase were determined by the thiocyanate competition kinetics method as a function of temperature and pH. The following T-dependent Arrhenius expressions (in units of L mol-1 s-1) were first derived for the •OH reactions with tartaric acid─k(T, H2A) = (3.3 ± 0.1) × 1010 exp[(-1350 ± 110 K)/T], k(T, HA-) = (3.6 ± 0.1) × 1010 exp[(-580 ± 110 K)/T], and k(T, A2-) = (3.3 ± 0.1) × 1010 exp[(-1190 ± 170 K)/T]─as well as mucic acid─k(T, H2A) = (2.2 ± 0.1) × 1010 exp[(-1140 ± 150 K)/T], k(T, HA-) = (4.8 ± 0.1) × 1010 exp[(-1280 ± 170 K)/T], and k(T, A2-) = (2.1 ± 0.1) × 1010 exp[(-970 ± 70 K)/T]. A general trend of the •OH rate constant is found as > > . The pH- and temperature-dependent rate constants of the OH radical reactions allow an accurate description of the source and sink processes in the tropospheric aqueous phase.

Analysis of Statistically Predicted Rate Constants for Pyrolysis of High-Density Plastic Using R Software.

The surge in plastic waste production has forced researchers to work on practically feasible recovery processes. Pyrolysis is a promising and intriguing option for the recycling of plastic waste. Developing a model that simulates the pyrolysis of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) as the most common polymer is important in determining the impact of operational parameters on system behavior. The type and amount of primary products of pyrolysis, such as oil, gas, and waxes, can be predicted statistically using a multiple linear regression model (MLRM) in R software. To the best of our knowledge, the statistical estimation of kinetic rate constants for pyrolysis of high-density plastic through MLRM analysis using R software has never been reported in the literature. In this study, the temperature-dependent rate constants were fixed experimentally at 420 °C. The rate constants with differences of 0.02, 0.03, and 0.04 from empirically set values were analyzed for pyrolysis of HDPE using MLRM in R software. The added variable plots, scatter plots, and 3D plots demonstrated a good correlation between the dependent and predictor variables. The possible changes in the final products were also analyzed by applying a second-order differential equation solver (SODES) in MATLAB version R2020a. The outcomes of experimentally fixed-rate constants revealed an oil yield of 73% to 74%. The oil yield increased to 78% with a difference of 0.03 from the experimentally fixed rate constants, but light wax, heavy wax, and carbon black decreased. The increased oil and gas yield with reduced byproducts verifies the high significance of the conducted statistical analysis. The statistically predicted kinetic rate constants can be used to enhance the oil yield at an industrial scale.

Kinetic study on the molecular mechanism of light-driven inward proton transport by schizorhodopsins

Schizorhodopsins (SzRs) are light-driven inward proton pumping membrane proteins. A H+ is released to the cytoplasmic solvent from the chromophore, retinal Schiff base (RSB), after light absorption, and then another H+ is bound to the RSB at the end of photocyclic reaction. However, the mechanistic detail of H+ transfers in SzR is almost unknown. Here we studied the deuterium isotope effect and the temperature dependence of the reaction rate constants of elementary steps in the photocycles of SzRs. The former indicated that deprotonation and reprotonation of RSB is mainly accomplished by H+ hopping between heavy atoms with similar H+ affinity. Furthermore, the temperature dependence of the rate constants revealed that most of H+ transfer events have a high entropy barrier. In contrast, the activation enthalpy and entropy of extremely thermostable SzR (MsSzR) are significantly higher than other types of SzRs (SzR1 and MtSzR) suggesting that its highly thermostable structure is optimized with at the cost of slower reaction rates at ambient temperatures.

Transfer Learning Approach to Multitarget Temperature-Dependent Reaction Rate Prediction.

Accurate prediction of temperature-dependent reaction rate constants of organic compounds is of great importance to both atmospheric chemistry and combustion science. Extensive work has been done on developing automated mechanism generation systems but the lack of quality reaction rate data remains a huge bottleneck in the application of highly detailed mechanisms. Machine learning prediction models have been recently adopted to alleviate the data gap in thermochemistry and have great potential to do the same for kinetic data with the recent release of quality reaction rate data compilations. The ultimate goal is to formulate easily accessible, general-purpose, temperature-dependent, and multitarget models for the prediction of reaction rates. To that end, we propose a model that depends on the well-known Morgan fingerprints as well as learned representations transferred from the QM9 data set. We propose the use of an Arrhenius-based loss where predictions of the three modified-Arrhenius parameters (A, n, and B = Ea/R) are given instead of the direct prediction of reaction rate constants. Our model is >35% more accurate compared to a baseline model of feed forward network (FFN) on Morgan fingerprints.

Accurate Calculation of Rate Constant and Isotope Effect for the F + H2 Reaction by the Coupled 3D Time-Dependent Wave Packet Method on the Newly Constructed Ab Initio Ground Potential Energy Surface.

We employ coupled three-dimensional (3D) time dependent wave packet formalism in hyperspherical coordinates for reactive scattering problem on the newly constructed ab initio calculated ground adiabatic potential energy surface for the F + H2/D2 reaction. The convergence profiles for various reactive channels are depicted at low collision energy regimes with respect to the total angular momentum (J) quantum numbers. For two different reactant diatomic molecules (H2 and D2) initially at their respective ground roto-vibrational state (v = 0, j = 0), calculated state-to-state as well as total integral cross sections as a function of collision energy, temperature dependent rate constants, and the kinetic isotope effect for various reactivity profiles of F + H2 and F + D2 reactions are presented along with previous theoretical and experimental results.

A theoretical study on the mechanism and kinetics of the Dimeric TrimethylAluminum + O2 reaction in the gas phase: A potential chain-initiation in the hypergolic combustion of TMA in air

The mechanism and kinetics of the (CH3)6Al2 + O2 reaction and some associated reactions were studied at the CCSD(T)//B3LYP/6–311++(3df,2p) level of theory as well as VTST and RRKM Master Equation calculations. The predicted potential energy surface reveals that the reaction of O2 with TMA dimer has two pathways: one proceeds via a tight transition state with the energy barrier of 27.1 kcal.mol−1 and the other occurs via a loose transition state above the reactants by 9.5 kcal.mol−1, resulting in the formation of the major products, (CH3)2AlOAl(CH3)2OCH3 + CH3. The former, larger radical product was found to be unstable under the ambient condition; it readily fragments to give (CH3)2AlOAl(CH3)OCH3 + CH3 barrierlessly with a small endothermicity, 3.3 kcal.mol−1. (CH3)2AlOAl(CH3)OCH3 was, however, found to be quite stable; its most favorable reaction path taking place by a four-member ring transition state producing CH3-cyc-Al(O)(CH2)Al-CH3 and CH3OH has an energy barrier of 48 kcal.mol−1. The equilibrium constants for the (TMA)2 ⇌ 2TMA reaction at temperatures 100.3, 115, and 155.7 °C were predicted to be 33.3, 92.2, and 1023.7 atm, respectively, agreeing satisfactorily with experimental values, 28.3, 76.7, and 931 atm, respectively, measured by Laubengayer et al. (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1941, 63, 477). The temperature-dependent rate constants for three investigated reactions have been computed in the range of 300–2000 K and 760 Torr N2. A least-squares analysis of the result for the (TMA)2 + O2 reaction, presented with the modified Arrhenius form, can be written by the expression:k(T) = 2.64 × 10-21T3.08 exp(-9.50 kcal.mol−1/RT) cm3 molecule-1 s−1; T = 300 – 2000 K.