A computational study of the water-catalyzed reaction of chlonitromethane with the OH radical

The Mechanism and Kinetics Model of Degradation of Dicarboxylic Acids by Hydroxyl Radicals under Atmospheric Conditions

The atmospheric degradation mechanism of dicarboxylic acids (DCAs) initiated by hydroxyl radicals has been theoretically investigated at the DLPNO-CCSD(T)/def2-TZVP//BH&HLYP/6-311++G(d,p) level of theory. In the presence of O₂, the degradation of DCAs by hydroxyl radicals takes place through a two-step mechanism: the α-H elimination and the degradation of the peroxyl radical intermediate. The latter degradation mechanism is easy to proceed for the exothermic process of radical recombination. Therefore, the degradation rate of DCAs is determined by an α-H elimination step, which is accelerated in the case of long carbon-chain DCAs with a lower energy barrier. Canonical variational transition state theory has been employed to estimate the rate constants of the H-elimination step of the DCA degradation reaction by hydroxyl radicals over the temperature range of 220-1000 K.

Insights into unexpected photoisomerization from photooxidation of tribromoacetic acid in aqueous environment using ultrafast spectroscopy

Haloacetic acids are carcinogenic disinfection by-products (DPBs) and their photo-decomposition pathways, especially for those containing bromine and iodine, are not fully understood. In this study, femtosecond transient absorption (fs-TA) spectroscopy experiments were introduced for the first time to investigate the photochemistry of tribromoacetic acid. The fs-TA experiments showed that a photoisomerization intermediate species HOOCCBr₂-Br (iso-TBAA) was formed within several picoseconds after the excitation of TBAA. The absorption wavelength of the iso-TBAA was supported by time-dependent density calculations. With the Second-order Møller-Plesset perturbation theory, the structures and thermodynamics of the OH-insertion reactions of iso-TBAA were elucidated when water molecules were involved in the reaction complex. The calculations also revealed that the isomer species were able to react with water with its reaction dynamics dramatically catalyzed by the hydrogen bonding network. The proposed water catalyzed OH-insertion/HBr elimination mechanism predicted three major photoproducts, namely, HBr, CO and CO₂, which was consistent with the photolysis experiments with firstly reported CO formation rate and mass conversion yield as 0.096 min^-1 and 0.75 ± 0.1 respectively. The spectroscopic technique, numerical tool and disclosed mechanisms provided insights on photodecomposition and subsequent reactions of polyhalo-DPBs contain heavy atom(s) (e.g., Br, I) with water, aliphatic alcohols or other nucleophiles.

Effects of Atmospheric Water on ·OH-initiated Oxidation of Organophosphate Flame Retardants: A DFT Investigation on TCPP

Tris(2-chloroisopropyl) phosphate (TCPP), a widely used organophosphate flame retardant, has been recognized as an important atmospheric pollutant. It is notable that TCPP has potential for long-range atmospheric transport. However, its atmospheric fate is unknown, restricting its environmental risk assessment. Herein we performed quantum chemical calculations to investigate the atmospheric transformation mechanisms and kinetics of TCPP initiated by ·OH in the presence of O₂/NO/NO₂, and the effects of ubiquitous water on these reactions. Results show the H-abstraction pathways are the most favorable for the titled reaction. The calculated gaseous rate constant and lifetime at 298 K are 1.7 × 10^-10 cm³molecule^-1 s^-1 and 1.7 h, respectively. However, when considering atmospheric water, the corresponding lifetime is about 0.5-20.2 days. This study reveals for the first time that water has a negative role in the ·OH-initiated degradation of TCPP by modifying the stabilities of prereactive complexes and transition states via forming hydrogen bonds, which unveils one underlying mechanism for the observed persistence of TCPP in the atmosphere. Water also influences secondary reaction pathways of selected TCPP radicals formed from the primary H-abstraction. These results demonstrate the importance of water in the evaluation of the atmospheric fate of newly synthesized chemicals and emerging pollutants.

Exploring the role of a single water molecule in the tropospheric reaction of glycolaldehyde with an OH radical: a mechanistic and kinetics study

This work reveals that though a single-water molecule decelerates the atmospheric reaction between the glycolaldehyde and OH radical, however, it facilitates the cis–​trans interconversion along the hydrogen-abstraction pathways.