Br2 molecular elimination in photolysis of (COBr)2 at 248 nm by using cavity ring-down absorption spectroscopy: A photodissociation channel being ignored

Photodissociation of CH2BrCHBrC(O)Cl at 248 nm: probing Br2 as the primary fragment using cavity ring-down spectroscopy

The photodissociation of 2,3-dibromopropionyl chloride (CH₂BrCHBrC(O)Cl, 2,3-DBPC) at 248 nm was carried out to study Br₂ as the primary molecular product in the B³Π⁺_0u ← X¹Σ⁺_g transition using cavity ring-down absorption spectroscopy. The rotational spectra (v'' = 0-2) were acquired and assigned with the aid of spectral simulation. It is verified that the obtained Br₂ fragment is attributed to the one-photon dissociation of 2,3-DBPC and is free from contributions of secondary reactions. The vibrational ratio of the Br₂ population of v(0):v(1):v(2) is equal to 1:(0.58 ± 0.12):(0.23 ± 0.09), corresponding to the Boltzmann vibrational temperature of 623 ± 38 K. The quantum yield of Br₂ eliminated from 2,3-DBPC is estimated to be 0.09 ± 0.04. The dissociation pathways of 2,3-DBPC and its potential energy surfaces were calculated using density functional theory. By employing the CCSD(T)//M062X/6-31+g(d,p) level of theory, transition state barriers and corresponding reaction energies were calculated for the Br, Cl, Br₂, BrCl, HBr and HCl elimination channels. The unimolecular rate constant for Br₂ elimination was determined to be 2.09 × 10⁵ s^-1 using Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel-Marcus (RRKM) theory, thus explaining the small quantum yield of the Br₂ channel.

Probing BrCl from photodissociation of CH2BrCl and CHBr2Cl at 248 nm using cavity ring-down spectroscopy

Photodissociation of di- and tri-halogenated methanes including CH2BrCl and CHBr2Cl at 248 nm was investigated using cavity ringdown absorption spectroscopy (CRDS). The spectra of the BrCl(v'' = 2, 3) and Br2(v'' = 1, 2) fragments were probed over the wavelength range of 594.5-596 nm in the B3Π+0u ← X1Σ+g and B3Π (0+) ← X1Σ+ transitions, respectively. Their corresponding spectra were simulated for assignment of rotational lines at a given vibrational level. The quantum yields for Br2 eliminated from CHBr2Cl and BrCl from CH2BrCl were determined to be 0.048 ± 0.018 and 0.037 ± 0.014, respectively. The photodissociation of CHBr2Cl yielded only the Br2 fragment, but not the BrCl fragment in the experiments. An ab initio theoretical method based on the CCSD(T)//B3LYP/6-311g(d,p) level was employed to evaluate the potential energy surface for the dissociation pathways to produce Br2 and BrCl from CHBr2Cl, which encountered a transition state barrier of 445 and 484 kJ mol-1, respectively. The corresponding RRKM rate constants were calculated to show that the branching ratio of (Br2/BrCl) is ∼20. The BrCl spectrum is expected to be obscured by the much larger Br2 spectrum, explaining why BrCl fragments cannot be detected in the photolysis of CHBr2Cl.

Photodissociation of CH2BrI using cavity ring-down spectroscopy: in search of a BrI elimination channel

Photodissociation of CH2BrI was investigated in search of unimolecular elimination of BrI via a primary channel using cavity ring-down absorption spectroscopy (CRDS) at 248 nm. The BrI spectra were acquired involving the first three ground vibrational levels corresponding to A3Π1 ← X1Σ+ transition. With the aid of spectral simulation, the BrI rotational lines were assigned. The nascent vibrational populations for v'' = 0, 1, and 2 levels are obtained with a population ratio of 1 : (0.58 ± 0.10) : (0.34 ± 0.05), corresponding to a Boltzmann-like vibrational temperature of 713 ± 49 K. The quantum yield of the ground state BrI elimination reaction is determined to be 0.044 ± 0.014. The CCSD(T)//B3LYP/MIDI! method was employed to explore the potential energy surface for the unimolecular elimination of BrI from CH2BrI.

Cavity Ring-Down Absorption Spectroscopy: Optical Characterization of ICl Product in Photodissociation of CH2ICl at 248 nm

Iodine monochloride (ICl) elimination from one-photon dissociation of CH₂ICl at 248 nm is monitored by cavity ring-down absorption spectroscopy (CRDS). The spectrum of ICl is acquired in the transition of B³Π₀ ← X¹Σ⁺ and is confirmed to result from a primary photodissociation, that is, CH₂ICl + hν → CH₂ + ICl. The vibrational population ratio is determined with the aid of spectral simulation to be 1:(0.36 ± 0.10):(0.11 ± 0.05) for the vibrational levels ν = 0, 1, and 2 in the ground electronic state, corresponding to a Boltzmann-like vibrational temperature of 535 ± 69 K. The quantum yield of the ICl molecular channel for the reaction is obtained to be 0.052 ± 0.026 using a relative method in which the scheme CH₂Br₂ → CH₂ + Br₂ is adopted as the reference reaction. The ICl product contributed by the secondary collisions is minimized such that its quantum yield obtained is not overestimated. With the aid of the CCSD(T)//B3LYP/MIDI! level of theory, the ICl elimination from CH₂ICl is evaluated to follow three pathways via either (1) a three-center transition state or (2) two isomerization transition states. However, the three-center concerted mechanism is verified to be unfavorable.

Mass-Dependent and -Independent Fractionation of Mercury Isotope during Gas-Phase Oxidation of Elemental Mercury Vapor by Atomic Cl and Br

This study presents the first measurement of Hg stable isotope fractionation during gas-phase oxidation of Hg(0) vapor by halogen atoms (Cl(•), Br(•)) in the laboratory at 750 ± 1 Torr and 298 ± 3 K. Using a relative rate technique, the rate coefficients for Hg(0)+Cl(•) and Hg(0)+Br(•) reactions are determined to be (1.8 ± 0.5) × 10(-11) and (1.6 ± 0.8) × 10(-12) cm(3) molecule(-1) s(-1), respectively. Results show that heavier isotopes are preferentially enriched in the remaining Hg(0) during Cl(•) initiated oxidation, whereas being enriched in the product during oxidation by Br(•). The fractionation factors for (202)Hg/(198)Hg during the Cl(•) and Br(•) initiated oxidations are α(202/198) = 0.99941 ± 0.00006 (2σ) and 1.00074 ± 0.00014 (2σ), respectively. A Δ(199)Hg/Δ(201)Hg ratio of 1.64 ± 0.30 (2σ) during oxidation of Hg(0) by Br atoms suggests that Hg-MIF is introduced by the nuclear volume effect (NVE). In contrast, the Hg(0) + Cl(•) reaction produces a Δ(199)Hg/Δ(201)Hg-slope of 1.89 ± 0.18 (2σ), which in addition to a high degree of odd-mass-number isotope MIF suggests impacts from MIF effects other than NVE. This reaction also exhibits significant MIF of (200)Hg (Δ(200)Hg, up to -0.17‰ in the reactant) and is the first physicochemical process identified to trigger (200)Hg anomalies that are frequently detected in atmospheric samples.

Characterization of molecular channel in photodissociation of SOCl2 at 248 nm: Cl2 probing by cavity ring-down absorption spectroscopy

A primary elimination channel of the chlorine molecule in the one-photon dissociation of SOCl2 at 248 nm was investigated using cavity ring-down absorption spectroscopy (CRDS). By means of spectral simulation, the ratio of the vibrational population in the v = 0, 1, and 2 levels was evaluated to be 1 : (0.10 ± 0.02) : (0.009 ± 0.005), corresponding to a Boltzmann vibrational temperature of 340 ± 30 K. The Cl2 molecular channel was obtained with a quantum yield of 0.4 ± 0.2 from the X(1)A' ground state of SOCl2via internal conversion. The dissociation mechanism differs from a prior study where a smaller yield of <3% was obtained, initiated from the 2(1)A' excited state. Temperature-dependence measurements of the Cl2 fragment turn out to support our mechanism. With the aid of ab initio potential energy calculations, two dissociation routes to the molecular products were found, including one synchronous dissociation pathway via a three-center transition state (TS) and the other sequential dissociation pathway via a roaming-mediated isomerization TS. The latter mechanism with a lower energy barrier dominates the dissociation reaction.

Molecular halogen elimination from halogen-containing compounds in the atmosphere

Atmospheric halogen chemistry has drawn much attention, because the halogen atom (X) playing a catalytic role may cause severe stratospheric ozone depletion. Atomic X elimination from X-containing hydrocarbons is recognized as the major primary dissociation process upon UV-light irradiation, whereas direct elimination of the X2 product has been seldom discussed or remained a controversial issue. This account is intended to review the detection of X2 primary products using cavity ring-down absorption spectroscopy in the photolysis at 248 nm of a variety of X-containing compounds, focusing on bromomethanes (CH2Br2, CF2Br2, CHBr2Cl, and CHBr3), dibromoethanes (1,1-C2H4Br2 and 1,2-C2H4Br2) and dibromoethylenes (1,1-C2H2Br2 and 1,2-C2H2Br2), diiodomethane (CH2I2), thionyl chloride (SOCl2), and sulfuryl chloride (SO2Cl2), along with a brief discussion on acyl bromides (BrCOCOBr and CH2BrCOBr). The optical spectra, quantum yields, and vibrational population distributions of the X2 fragments have been characterized, especially for Br2 and I2. With the aid of ab initio calculations of potential energies and rate constants, the detailed photodissociation mechanisms may be comprehended. Such studies are fundamentally important to gain insight into the dissociation dynamics and may also practically help to assess the halogen-related environmental variation.