Femtosecond Photolysis of HOCl(aq): Dissipation of Fragment Kinetic Energy

Contrasting the excited state reaction pathways of phenol and para-methylthiophenol in the gas and liquid phases

To explore how the solvent influences primary aspects of bond breaking, the gas and solution phase photochemistries of phenol and ofpara-methylthiophenol are directly compared using, respectively, H (Rydberg) atom photofragment translation spectroscopy and femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy. Approaches are demonstrated that allow explicit comparisons of the nascent product energy disposals and dissociation mechanisms in the two phases. It is found, at least for the case of the weakly perturbing cyclohexane environment, that most aspects of the primary reaction dynamics of the isolated molecule are reproduced in solution. Specifically, in the gas phase, both molecules can undergo fast X-H (X = O, S) bond dissociation upon excitation with short wavelengths (193 < lambda(pump) < 216 nm), following population of the dissociative S2 (1 1(pi sigma*)) state. Product electronic branching, vibrational and translational energy disposals are determined. Photolysis of phenol and para-methylthiophenol in solution at 200 nm results in formation of vibrationally excited radicals on a timescale shorter than 200 fs. Excitation of para-methylthiophenol at 267 nm reaches close to the S1 (1 1(pipi*))/S2 (11(pi sigma*)) conical intersection (CI): ultrafast dissociation is observed in both the isolated and solution systems-again indicating direct dissociation on the S2 potential energy surface. Comparing results for this precursor at different excitation energies, the extent of geminate recombination and the derived H-atom ejection lengths in the condensed phase photolyses are in qualitative agreement with the translational energy release measured in the gas phase studies. Conversely, excitation of phenol at 267 nm prepares the system in its S1 state at an energy well below its S1/S2 CI; the slow O-H bond fission inferred in the gas phase experiments is observed directly in the time-resolved studies in cyclohexane solution via the appearance of phenoxyl radical absorption after -1 ns, with only S1 excited state absorption discernible at earlier delay times. The slow O-H bond fission in solution provides additional evidence for a tunnelling dissociation mechanism, where the H atom tunnels beneath the lower diabats of the S2/S1 CI. Finally, the photodissociation of phenol clusters in solution is considered, where evidence is presented that the O-H dissociation coordinate is impeded in H-bonded dimers.

Comparing molecular photofragmentation dynamics in the gas and liquid phases

This article explores the extent to which insights gleaned from detailed studies of molecular photodissociations in the gas phase (i.e. under isolated molecule conditions) can inform our understanding of the corresponding photofragmentation processes in solution. Systems selected for comparison include a thiophenol (p-methylthiophenol), a thioanisole (p-methylthioanisole) and phenol, in vacuum and in cyclohexane solution. UV excitation in the gas phase results in RX-Y (X = O, S; Y = H, CH3) bond fission in all cases, but over timescales that vary by ~4 orders of magnitude - all of which behaviours can be rationalised on the basis of the relevant bound and dissociative excited state potential energy surfaces (PESs) accessed by UV photoexcitation, and of the conical intersections that facilitate radiationless transfer between these PESs. Time-resolved UV pump-broadband UV/visible probe and/or UV pump-broadband IR probe studies of the corresponding systems in cyclohexane solution reveal additional processes that are unique to the condensed phase. Thus, for example, the data clearly reveal evidence of (i) vibrational relaxation of the photoexcited molecules prior to their dissociation and of the radical fragments formed upon X-Y bond fission, and (ii) geminate recombination of the RX and Y products (leading to reformation of the ground state parent and/or isomeric adducts). Nonetheless, the data also show that, in each case, the characteristics (and the timescale) of the initial bond fission process that occurs under isolated molecule conditions are barely changed by the presence of a weakly interacting solvent like cyclohexane. These condensed phase studies are then extended to an ether analogue of phenol (allyl phenyl ether), wherein UV photo-induced RO-allyl bond fission constitutes the first step of a photo-Claisen rearrangement.

CONNECTING CHEMICAL DYNAMICS IN GASES AND LIQUIDS

▪ Abstract  Modern ultrafast spectroscopic techniques provide new opportunities to study chemical reaction dynamics in liquids and hold the possibility of obtaining much of the same detailed information available in gases. Vibrational energy transfer studies are the most advanced of the investigations and demonstrate that it is possible to observe state-specific pathways of energy flow within a vibrationally excited molecule (intramolecular vibrational relaxation) and into the surrounding solvent molecules (intermolecular energy transfer). Energy transfer in liquids and gases share many common aspects, but the presence of the solvent also alters the relaxation in both obvious and subtle ways. Photodissociation is amenable to similarly detailed study in liquids, and there are informative new measurements. Bimolecular reactions have received the least attention in state-resolved measurements in liquids, but the means to carry them much further now exist. Studying photodissociation and bimolecular reaction of molecules prepared with initial vibrational excitation in liquids is a realistic, but challenging, goal.

Time-Resolved Spectroscopic Study of the Reaction Cl + n-C5H12 → HCl + C5H11 in Solution

We study the hydrogen abstraction reaction from pentane by chlorine radicals using four different experimental approaches. We use two different solvents (CH2Cl2 and CCl4) and two different chlorine atom sources (photodissociation of dissolved Cl2 and two-photon photolysis of the solvent) to investigate their effects on the recombination and reactivity of the chlorine radical. All four experimental schemes involve direct probing of the transient chlorine population via a charge transfer transition with a solvent molecule. In one of the four approaches, photolysis of Cl2 in dichloromethane, we also monitor the nascent reaction products (HCl) by transient vibrational spectroscopy. Probing both the reactants and the products provides a comprehensive view of this bimolecular reaction in solution. Between one-third and two-thirds of the chlorine radicals that initially escape the solvent cage undergo diffusive geminate recombination with their partner radical (either another chlorine atom or the solvent radical). The rest react with pentane with the bimolecular rate constants k(bi) = (9.5 +/- 0.7) x 10(9) M(-1) s(-1) in CH2Cl2 and k(bi) = (7.4 +/- 2) x 10(9) M(-1) s(-1) in CCl4. The recombination yield phi(rec) depends on both the chlorine atom precursor and the solvent and is larger in the more viscous carbon tetrachloride solutions. The bimolecular reaction rate k(bi) depends only on the solvent and is consistent with a nearly diffusion-limited reaction.

Recombination Dynamics and Hydrogen Abstraction Reactions of Chlorine Radicals in Solution

We observe chlorine radical dynamics in solution following two-photon photolysis of the solvent, dichloromethane. In neat CH(2)Cl(2), one-third of the chlorine radicals undergo diffusive geminate recombination, and the rest abstract a hydrogen atom from the solvent with a bimolecular rate constant of (1.35 +/- 0.06) x 10(7) M(-1) s(-1). Upon addition of hydrogen-containing solutes, the chlorine atom decay becomes faster, reflecting the presence of a new reaction pathway. We study 16 different solutes that include alkanes (pentane, hexane, heptane, and their cyclic analogues), alcohols (methanol, ethanol, 1-propanol, 2-propanol, and 1-butanol), and chlorinated alkanes (cyclohexyl chloride, 1-chlorobutane, 2-chlorobutane, 1,2-dichlorobutane, and 1,4-dichlorobutane). Chlorine reactions with alkanes have diffusion-limited rate constants that do not depend on the molecular structure, indicating the absence of a potential barrier. Hydrogen abstraction from alcohols is slower than from alkanes and depends weakly on molecular structure, consistent with a small reaction barrier. Reactions with chlorinated alkanes are the slowest, and their rate constants depend strongly on the number and position of the chlorine substituents, signaling the importance of activation barriers to these reactions. The relative rate constants for the activation-controlled reactions agree very well with the predictions of the gas-phase structure-activity relationships.

The Primary Photodynamics of Aqueous Nitrate: Formation of Peroxynitrite

We have examined the photochemical reactions occurring after irradiation at 200 nm of the aqueous nitrate ion, NO3(-)(aq). Using femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy over the range 194-388 nm, we have characterized the formation and subsequent relaxation of the primary photoproducts of nitrate photolysis. The dominant photoproduct is the cis-isomer of peroxynitrite, which accounts for 48% of the excited state molecules initially produced. A slightly smaller fraction, 44%, of the excited molecules return to the electronic ground state of NO3(-) and relax to the vibrational ground state in 2 ps. The remaining 8% of the molecules initially excited react via the *NO + *O2(-) or the NO- + O2 dissociation channels. Formation of NO2(-) and *NO2 is not observed, suggesting that the previous observations of these species in steady-state photolysis are caused by reactions occurring on a longer time scale.