Kinetic and mechanistic study of the pressure and temperature dependence of the reaction CH3O + NO
Abstract
New kinetic measurements for the CH3O + NO reaction have been performed using two different techniques. The discharge flow (DF) technique has been used to investigate the 0.5–5 Torr and 248–473 K pressure and temperature ranges and pulsed laser photolysis (PLP) has been used for the 30–500 Torr and 284–364 K ranges. These new results represent an extension of the pressure and temperature ranges investigated previously. This reaction is known to present two reaction pathways, the association pathway yielding CH3ONO and the disproportionation pathway yielding CH2O+HNO. Based on literature and present experimental data, using the results of ab initio calculations, a multichannel RRKM analysis was developed to interpret the experimental results. This analysis has shown that the disproportionation reaction occurs simultaneously by both a direct hydrogen abstraction reaction, and via the formation of energized CH3ONO* complex in competition with the association reaction. The RRKM analysis, fitted to present and previous data, has yielded a second-order limiting low-pressure value of 2.5 × 10−12 cm3 molecule−1 s−1 at 298 K, with a complex temperature dependence. The limiting high-pressure rate constant derived in the same way is k∞ = (3.4 ± 0.4) × 10−11(T/298)−0.75. The model allows the prediction of CH3O loss rate constants and of the branching ratios in the 1–760 Torr and 220–600 K ranges. For a convenient presentation of the overall rate constant, an analytical expression using the conventional Troe expression with a temperature-dependent addition constant, has been fitted to the results of the RRKM analysis.