Intramolecular CH3-migration-controlled cation reactions in the VUV photochemistry of 2-methyl-3-buten-2-ol investigated by synchrotron photoionization mass spectrometry and theoretical calculations

2-Methyl-3-buten-2-ol (MBO232) is a biogenic volatile organic compound (BVOC), and has a large percentage of emission into the atmosphere. The vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) photochemistry of BVOCs is of great importance for atmospheric chemistry. Studies have been carried out on several BVOCs but have not extended to MBO232. In the present report, the photoionization and dissociation processes of MBO232 in the energy range of 8.0-15.0 eV have been studied by tunable VUV synchrotron radiation coupled with a time-of-flight mass spectrometer. By measuring the photoionization spectra, the adiabatic ionization energy (AIE) of MBO232 and the appearance energies (AEs) of the eight identified fragment ions (i.e., C4H7O+, C3H7O+, C5H9+, C3H6O+, CH3CO+, CH3O+, C4H5+, and C3H5+) were determined. High-level quantum chemistry calculations suggest that there are 3 direct channels and 5 indirect channels via transition states and intermediates accountable for these fragments. Among the reaction channels, the direct elimination of CH3 is the most dominant channel and produces the resonance-stabilized radical cation. Most interestingly, our results show that the CH3 selectively migrates towards the cation, which leads to the different indirect channels. The CH3 migration is a rare process in the dissociative photoionization of metal-free organic molecules. We explain the process by molecular orbital calculations and electron localization function analysis and explore the non-conventional dissociation channels via the CH3 roaming mechanism. We further perform kinetics analysis using RRKM theory for the channels of interest. The activation barrier, and rate constants are analyzed for the branching fractions of the products. These results provide important implications for the VUV photochemistry of BVOCs in the atmosphere.

From Energetics to Intracluster Chemistry: Valence Photoionization of Trifluoromethylsulfur Pentafluoride (CF3SF5) by Double Velocity Map Imaging

Trifluoromethylsulfur pentafluoride (CF₃SF₅) was valence threshold photoionized in a double imaging photoelectron photoion coincidence spectrometer using vacuum ultraviolet synchrotron radiation. In the 12.5-16.4 eV photon energy range, CF₃⁺, SF₅⁺, and SF₃⁺ cations were observed in both room temperature (RT) and molecular beam (MB) experiments. Their fractional abundances exhibited differences beyond the sample temperature. Kinetic energy analysis of the fragment ions confirmed the difference in the dissociative photoionization mechanism. In the RT experiment, the CF₃⁺ kinetic energies were extrapolated to a 11.84 ± 0.15 eV threshold, which was used in an ion cycle to determine the enthalpy of formation of CF₃SF₅ as Δ_fH°_298K(CF₃SF₅) = -1593 ± 16 kJ mol^-1. We also updated the enthalpy of formation of the sulfur pentafluoride radical as Δ_fH°_298K(SF₅) = -854 ± 7 kJ mol^-1 and discuss the discrepancy between the CF₃ ionization energy based on the Active Thermochemical Tables and the value anchored to the CF ionization energy. A computed reaction enthalpy network optimization resulted in Δ_fH°_298K(CF₃SF₅) = -1608 ± 20 kJ mol^-1. Both values for Δ_fH°_298K(CF₃SF₅) agree with previous ab initio ones in contrast to the original, experimental determination. SF₃⁺ is formed by F-transfer processes both in the RT and MB experiments. Although the same peaks were observed in both experiments, the lower SF₃⁺ onset energy and the more slowly rising CF₃⁺ kinetic energy release in the MB experiment revealed clustering and intracluster F-transfer reactions upon ionization. The monomer and dimer cation potential energy surfaces were explored to rationalize the observations. In the dimer cation, the observer CF₃SF₅ catalyzes fluorine transfer and promotes CF₄ formation, which ultimately leads to the SF₃⁺ fragment ion.

Dissociative photoionization of 1,3-dioxolane: We need six channels to fit the elephant

The dissociative photoionization of 1,3-dioxolane was studied by photoelectron photoion coincidence (PEPICO) spectroscopy in the photon energy range of 9.5-13.5 eV. Our statistical thermodynamics model shows that a total of six dissociation channels are involved in the formation of three fragment ions, namely, C₃ H₅ O₂ ⁺ (m/z 73), C₂ H₅ O⁺ (m/z 45), and C₂ H₄ O⁺ (m/z 44), with two channels contributing to the formation of each. By comparing the results of ab initio quantum chemical calculations to the experimentally derived appearance energies of the fragment ions, the most likely mechanisms for these unimolecular dissociation reactions are proposed, including a description of the relevant parts of the potential energy surface.

Dissociative photoionization of CF3Cl via the C2E and D2E states: competition of the C–F and C–Cl bond cleavages

Competition between C–F and C–Cl ruptures in the dissociative photoionization of CF₃Cl via C²E and D²E ionic states

Unimolecular reaction energies for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon ions

Imaging photoelectron photoion coincidence spectroscopy was employed to explore the unimolecular dissociation of the ionized polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) acenaphthylene, fluorene, cyclopenta[d,e,f]phenanthrene, pyrene, perylene, fluoranthene, dibenzo[a,e]pyrene, dibenzo[a,l]pyrene, coronene and corannulene. The primary reaction is always hydrogen atom loss, with the smaller species also exhibiting loss of C2H2 to varying extents. Combined with previous work on smaller PAH ions, trends in the reaction energies (E0) for loss of H from sp2-C and sp3-C centres, along with hydrocarbon molecule loss were found as a function of the number of carbon atoms in the ionized PAHs ranging in size from naphthalene to coronene. In the case of molecules which possessed at least one sp3-C centre, the activation energy for the loss of an H atom from this site was 2.34 eV, with the exception of cyclopenta[d,e,f]phenanthrene (CPP) ions, for which the E0 was 3.44 ± 0.86 eV due to steric constraints. The hydrogen loss from PAH cations and from their H-loss fragments exhibits two trends, depending on the number of unpaired electrons. For the loss of the first hydrogen atom, the energy is consistently ca. 4.40 eV, while the threshold to lose the second hydrogen atom is much lower at ca. 3.16 eV. The only exception was for the dibenzo[a,l]pyrene cation, which has a unique structure due to steric constraints, resulting in a low H loss reaction energy of 2.85 eV. If C2H2 is lost directly from the precursor cation, the energy required for this dissociation is 4.16 eV. No other fragmentation channels were observed over a large enough sample set for trends to be extrapolated, though data on CH3 and C4H2 loss obtained in previous studies is included for completeness. The dissociation reactions were also studied by collision induced dissociation after ionization by atmospheric pressure chemical ionization. When modeled with a simple temperature-based theory for the post-collision internal energy distribution, there was reasonable agreement between the two sets of data.

Dissociative ionisation of adamantane: a combined theoretical and experimental study

Diamond nanoparticles, or nanodiamonds, are intriguing carbon-based materials which, maybe surprisingly, are the most abundant constituent of presolar grains. While the spectroscopic properties of even quite large diamondoids have already been explored, little is known about their unimolecular fragmentation processes. In this paper we characterise the dissociative ionisation of adamantane (C₁₀H₁₆) - the smallest member of the diamondoid family - utilising imaging Photoelectron Photoion Coincidence (iPEPICO) spectroscopy and Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations. We have found adamantane to dissociatively photoionise via several parallel channels of which H, C₃H₇ and C₄H₈ losses are the most important ones. Calculations confirm the existence of a rate-limiting transition state for the multiple C-loss channels, which is located at 10.55 eV with respect to neutral adamantane. In addition, we found dissociation channels leading to small cationic hydrocarbons, which may be relevant in the interstellar medium.

Cl-Loss dynamics in the dissociative photoionization of CF3Cl with threshold photoelectron–photoion coincidence imaging

Cl-loss dynamics in the dissociative photoionization of CF₃Cl was investigated in the photon energy range of 12.30–18.50 eV.

Dissociative Ionization and Thermal Decomposition of Cyclopentanone

Despite the growing use of renewable and sustainable biofuels in transportation, their combustion chemistry is poorly understood, limiting our efforts to reduce harmful emissions. Here we report on the (dissociative) ionization and the thermal decomposition mechanism of cyclopentanone, studied using imaging photoelectron photoion coincidence spectroscopy. The fragmentation of the ions is dominated by loss of CO, C₂H₄, and C₂H₅, leading to daughter ions at m/z 56 and 55. Exploring the C₅H₈O^.+ potential energy surface reveals hydrogen tunneling to play an important role in low‐energy decarbonylation and probably also in the ethene‐loss processes, yielding 1‐butene and methylketene cations, respectively. At higher energies, pathways without a reverse barrier open up to oxopropenyl and cyclopropanone cations by ethyl‐radical loss and a second ethene‐loss channel, respectively. A statistical Rice–Ramsperger–Kassel–Marcus model is employed to test the viability of this mechanism. The pyrolysis of cyclopentanone is studied at temperatures ranging from about 800 to 1100 K. Closed‐shell pyrolysis products, namely 1,3‐butadiene, ketene, propyne, allene, and ethene, are identified based on their photoion mass‐selected threshold photoelectron spectrum. Furthermore, reactive radical species such as allyl, propargyl, and methyl are found. A reaction mechanism is derived incorporating both stable and reactive species, which were not predicted in prior computational studies.

Electronic Structure and Excited-State Dynamics of an Arduengo-Type Carbene and its Imidazolone Oxidation Product

We describe an investigation of the excited-state dynamics of isolated 1,3-di-tert-butyl-imidazoline-2-ylidene (tBu₂ Im, C₁₁ H₂₀ N₂ , m/z=180), an Arduengo-type carbene, by time- and frequency-resolved photoionization using a picosecond laser system. The energies of several singlet and triplet excited states were calculated by time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT). The S₁ state of the carbene deactivates on a 100 ps time scale possibly by intersystem crossing. In the experiments we observed an additional signal at m/z=196, that was assigned to the oxidation product 1,3-di-tert-butyl-imidazolone, tBu₂ ImO. It shows a well-resolved resonance-enhanced multiphoton ionization (REMPI) spectrum with an origin located at 36951 cm^-1 . Several low-lying vibrational bands could be assigned, with a lifetime that depends strongly on the excitation energy. At the origin the lifetime is longer than 3 ns, but drops to 49 ps at higher excess energies. To confirm formation of the imidazolone we also performed experiments on benzimidazolone (BzImO) for comparison. Apart from a redshift for BzImO the spectra of the two compounds are very similar. The TD-DFT values display a very good agreement with the experimental data.

Coincident velocity map image reconstruction illustrated by the single-photon valence photoionisation of CF3SF5

Photoion–photoelectron kinetic energy and angular anisotropy correlation maps reveal new details about the ionization mechanism.

Adduct Formation, B-H Activation and Ring Expansion at Room Temperature from Reactions of HBcat with NHCs

We report the reactions of catecholborane (HBcat; 1) with unsaturated and saturated NHCs as well as CAAC(Me) . Mono-NHC adducts of the type HBcat⋅NHC (NHC=nPr2 Im, iPr2 Im, iPr2 Im(Me) , and Dipp2 Im) were obtained by stoichiometric reactions of HBcat with the unsaturated NHCs. The reaction of CAAC(Me) with HBcat yielded the B-H activated product CAAC(Me) (H)Bcat via insertion of the carbine-carbon atom into the B-H bond. The saturated NHC Dipp2 SIm reacted in a 2:2 ratio yielding an NHC ring-expanded product at room temperature forming a six-membered -B-C=N-C=C-N- ring via C-N bond cleavage and further migration of the hydrides from two HBcat molecules to the former carbene-carbon atom.

Bifurcated dissociative photoionization mechanism of acetic acid anhydride revealed by imaging photoelectron photoion coincidence spectroscopy

PEPICO allows us a peek beyond the transition state to identify bifurcated reaction pathways.

25 years of N-heterocyclic carbenes: activation of both main-group element-element bonds and NHCs themselves

N-Heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) are widely used ligands and reagents in modern inorganic synthesis as well as in homogeneous catalysis and organocatalysis. However, NHCs are not always innocent bystanders. In the last few years, more and more examples were reported of reactions of NHCs with main-group elements which resulted in modification of the NHC. Many of these reactions lead to ring expansion and the formation of six-membered heterocyclic rings involving insertion of the heteroatom into the C-N bond and migration of hydrides, phenyl groups or boron-containing fragments. Furthermore, a few related NHC rearrangements were observed some decades ago. In this Perspective, we summarise the history of NHC ring expansion reactions from the 1960s till the present.

The reductive P–P coupling of primary and secondary phosphines mediated by N-heterocyclic carbenes

P–P bond formation! The reaction of an NHC with primary and secondary phosphines leads to dehydrocoupling of the phosphines with the formation of iPr₂ImH₂ and the corresponding carbene-phosphinidene adducts.

Decomposition of diazomeldrum's acid: a threshold photoelectron spectroscopy study

Derivatives of meldrum's acid are known precursors for a number of reactive intermediates. Therefore, we investigate diazomeldrum's acid (DMA) and its pyrolysis products by photoionization using vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) synchrotron radiation. The threshold photoelectron spectrum of DMA yields an ionization energy (IE) of 9.68 eV. Several channels for dissociative photoionization are observed. The first one is associated with loss of CH3, leading to a daughter ion with m/z = 155. Its appearance energy AE0K was determined to be 10.65 eV by fitting the experimental data using statistical theory. A second parallel channel leads to m/z = 69, corresponding to N2CHCO, with an AE0K of 10.72 eV. Several other channels open up at higher energy, among them the formation of acetone cation, a channel expected to be the result of a Wolff-rearrangement (WR) in the cation. When diazomeldrum's acid is heated in a pyrolysis reactor, three thermal decomposition pathways are observed. The major one is well-known and yields acetone, N2 and CO as consequence of the WR. However, two further channels were identified: The formation of 2-diazoethenone, NNCCO, together with acetone and CO2 as the second channel and E-formylketene (OCCHCHCO), propyne, N2 and O2 as a third one. 2-Diazoethenone and E-formylketene were identified based on their threshold photoelectron spectra and accurate ionization energies could be determined. Ionization energies for several isomers of both molecules were also computed. One of the key findings of this study is that acetone is observed upon decomposition of DMA in the neutral as well as in the ion and both point to a Wolff rearrangement to occur. However, the ion is subject to other decomposition channels favored at lower internal energies.

Dissociation of the anthracene radical cation: a comparative look at iPEPICO and collision-induced dissociation mass spectrometry results

The dissociation of the anthracene radical cation has been studied using two different methods: imaging photoelectron photoion coincidence spectrometry (iPEPCO) and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization-collision induced dissociation mass spectrometry (APCI-CID). Four reactions were investigated: (R1) C14H10(+•) → C14H9(+) + H, (R2) C14H9(+) → C14H8(+•) + H, (R3) C14H10(+•) → C12H8(+•) + C2H2 and (R4) C14H10(+•) → C10H8(+•) + C4H2. An attempt was made to assign structures to each fragment ion, and although there is still room for debate whether for the C12H8(+•) fragment ion is a cyclobuta[b]naphthalene or a biphenylene cation, our modeling results and calculations appear to suggest the more likely structure is cyclobuta[b]naphthalene. The results from the iPEPICO fitting of the dissociation of ionized anthracene are E0 = 4.28 ± 0.30 eV (R1), 2.71 ± 0.20 eV (R2), and 4.20 ± 0.30 eV (average of reaction R3) whereas the Δ(‡)S values (in J K(-1) mol(-1)) are 12 ± 15 (R1), 0 ± 15 (R2), and either 7 ± 10 (using cyclobuta[b]naphthalene ion fragment in reaction R3) or 22 ± 10 (using the biphenylene ion fragment in reaction R3). Modeling of the APCI-CID breakdown diagrams required an estimate of the postcollision internal energy distribution, which was arbitrarily assumed to correspond to a Boltzmann distribution in this study. One goal of this work was to determine if this assumption yields satisfactory energetics in agreement with the more constrained and theoretically vetted iPEPICO results. In the end, it did, with the APCI-CID results being similar.

Photoionization and pyrolysis of a 1,4-azaborinine: retro-hydroboration in the cation and identification of novel organoboron ring systems

The photoionization and dissociative photoionization of 1,4-di-tert-butyl-1,4-azaborinine by means of synchrotron radiation and threshold photoelectron photoion coincidence spectroscopy is reported. The ionization energy of the compound was determined to be 7.89 eV. Several low-lying electronically excited states in the cation were identified. The various pathways for dissociative photoionization were modeled by statistical theory, and appearance energies AE0K were obtained. The loss of isobutene in a retro-hydroboration reaction is the dominant pathway, which proceeds with a reverse barrier. Pyrolysis of the parent compound in a chemical reactor leads to the generation of several yet unobserved boron compounds. The ionization energies of the C4 H6 BN isomers 1,2- and 1,4-dihydro-1,4-azaborinine and the C3 H6 BN isomer 1,2-dihydro-1,3-azaborole were determined from threshold photoelectron spectra.