The thermal decomposition of diazomethane in the presence of hydrogen

Abstract

The rate constant for the thermal decomposition of diazomethane into methylene and nitrogen was measured as k= 0·9 × 10¹² exp(–32,000/RT) sec.^–1 over the range 293–393°. For H₂/CH₂N₂ ratios > 8 the methylene reacts to form methane and ethane almost exclusively. The results are interpreted in terms of the formation of vibrationally excited methane followed by collisional deactivation or dissociation to a methyl radical. For lower H₂/CH₂N₂ ratios other reactions become important leading to ethylene, acetylene, and hydrogen cyanide as products.