Thermal Decomposition of 1-Pentanol and Its Isomers: A Theoretical Study

Theoretical investigation on isomerization and decomposition reactions of pentanol radicals-part II: linear pentanol isomers

High-level ab initio calculations are conducted for studying the kinetics of three linear pentanol radicals generated through H-atom abstraction reactions. The species involved are optimized using the M06-2X/6-311++G(d,p) level of theory, while a relaxed scan at the M06-2X/6-31g level of theory with 10° increments is used for the hindrance potential for low-frequency torsional modes. Single-point energies for all stationary points are obtained through the QCISD(T) and MP2 methods in combination with cc-pVDZ, cc-pVTZ, and cc-pVQZ basis sets, which can be extrapolated to the complete basis set (CBS) limit. The rate constants and branching ratios for isomerization and decomposition reactions are computed over a temperature range of 250-2000 K and a pressure range of 0.01-100 atm. Isomerization reactions are dominant at low temperatures, while decomposition reactions are more dominant at high temperatures. The branching ratio of the isomerization reaction exhibits a slight decrease with increasing pressure, while the trend for decomposition reactions depends on the type of the breaking bond. Based on the calculations for five branched pentanol radicals in part I, kinetics of linear and branched pentanol radicals are compared in this work and the results reveal that, for the same kind of β-scission reaction at similar positions of linear and branched pentanol radicals, the rate constants of branched ones are faster than those of linear ones at low temperatures. The hydroxyl group adjacent to the breaking bond can increase the β-scission reaction rate constants, while the effect can be ignored when the hydroxyl group is not adjacent to the breaking bond. Moreover, compared to when the hydroxyl group is located in the middle of the carbon chain, its positioning at the chain's end yields a more noticeable impact on the products and rate constants of C-O bond and O-H bond β-scission reactions. Besides, when incorporating calculated rate constants into the CRECK model, the updated mechanism shows a better performance for ignition delay times of 1-pentanol in the NTC range but exhibits lower reactivity at higher temperatures. The simulation of speciation profiles also shows better agreement with the experimental data obtained using a flow reactor.

High-Temperature Dissociation of Neopentanol: Shock Tube/Photoionization Mass Spectrometry Studies

The pyrolysis mechanism of 2,2-dimethylpropan-1-ol (neopentanol) has been investigated at high temperatures (1128-1401K) and high pressures (5 and 15 bar). The experiments were performed in a miniature shock tube coupled to a time-of-flight mass spectrometer. Cations were generated by tunable vacuum ultraviolet photoionization resulting in multidimensional data sets containing mass and photoionization spectra and the time histories of species. At the elevated temperatures and pressures of this work, neopentanol was determined to dissociate primarily by the scission of a C-C bond yielding tert-butyl and hydroxymethyl radicals. These promptly form isobutene and formaldehyde by H-atom elimination. In the structurally similar molecule neopentane, roaming radical reactions have previously been found to be important under conditions close to the present work (1260-1459 K, 1.1 bar). There are two possible roaming radical reactions for neopentanol. However, no experimental evidence for these reactions was found at the elevated pressures in this study, and the dissociation of neopentanol is dominated by bond scission yielding radical products.

Combustion of n-C3-C6 Linear Alcohols: An Experimental and Kinetic Modeling Study. Part I: Reaction Classes, Rate Rules, Model Lumping, and Validation

This work (and the companion paper, Part II) presents new experimental data for the combustion of n-C3-C6 alcohols (n-propanol, n-butanol, n-pentanol, n-hexanol) and a lumped kinetic model to describe their pyrolysis and oxidation. The kinetic subsets for alcohol pyrolysis and oxidation from the CRECK kinetic model have been systematically updated to describe the pyrolysis and high- and low-temperature oxidation of this series of fuels. Using the reaction class approach, the reference kinetic parameters have been determined based on experimental, theoretical, and kinetic modeling studies previously reported in the literature, providing a consistent set of rate rules that allow easy extension and good predictive capability. The modeling approach is based on the assumption of an alkane-like and alcohol-specific moiety for the alcohol fuel molecules. A thorough review and discussion of the information available in the literature supports the selection of the kinetic parameters that are then applied to the n-C3-C6 alcohol series and extended for further proof to describe n-octanol oxidation. Because of space limitations, the large amount of information, and the comprehensive character of this study, the manuscript has been divided into two parts. Part I describes the kinetic model as well as the lumping techniques and provides a synoptic synthesis of its wide range validation made possible also by newly obtained experimental data. These include speciation measurements performed in a jet-stirred reactor (p = 107 kPa, T = 550-1100 K, φ = 0.5, 1.0, 2.0) for n-butanol, n-pentanol, and n-hexanol and ignition delay times of ethanol, n-propanol, n-butanol, n-pentanol/air mixtures measured in a rapid compression machine at φ = 1.0, p = 10 and 30 bar, and T = 704-935 K. These data are presented and discussed in detail in Part II, together with detailed comparisons with model predictions and a deep kinetic discussion. This work provides new experimental targets that are useful for kinetic model development and validation (Part II), as well as an extensively validated kinetic model (Part I), which also contains subsets of other reference components for real fuels, thus allowing the assessment of combustion properties of new sustainable fuels and fuel mixtures.

CRAHCN-O: A Consistent Reduced Atmospheric Hybrid Chemical Network Oxygen Extension for Hydrogen Cyanide and Formaldehyde Chemistry in CO2-, N2-, H2O-, CH4-, and H2-Dominated Atmospheres

Hydrogen cyanide (HCN) and formaldehyde (H₂CO) are key precursors to biomolecules such as nucleobases and amino acids in planetary atmospheres. However, many reactions which produce and destroy these species in atmospheres containing CO₂ and H₂O are still missing from the literature. We use a quantum chemistry approach to find these missing reactions and calculate their rate coefficients using canonical variational transition state theory and Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel-Marcus/master equation theory at the BHandHLYP/aug-cc-pVDZ level of theory. We calculate the rate coefficients for 126 total reactions and validate our calculations by comparing with experimental data in the 39% of available cases. Our calculated rate coefficients are most frequently within a factor of 2 of experimental values and generally always within an order of magnitude of these values. We discover 45 previously unknown reactions and identify 6 from this list that are most likely to dominate H₂CO and HCN production and destruction in planetary atmospheres. We highlight ¹O + CH₃ → H₂CO + H as a new key source and H₂CO + ¹O → HCO + OH as a new key sink, for H₂CO in upper planetary atmospheres. In this effort, we develop an oxygen extension to our consistent reduced atmospheric hybrid chemical network (CRAHCN-O), building off our previously developed network for HCN production in N₂-, CH₄-, and H₂-dominated atmospheres (CRAHCN). This extension can be used to simulate both HCN and H₂CO production in atmospheres dominated by any of CO₂, N₂, H₂O, CH₄, and H₂.

Mechanism and kinetics of the oxidation of dimethyl carbonate by hydroxyl radical in the atmosphere

The mechanism and kinetics for the reaction of dimethyl carbonate (DMC) with OH radical have been studied by using quantum chemical methods. Four reaction pathways were identified for the initial reaction. In the first two pathways, hydrogen atom abstraction is taking place and alkyl radical intermediate is formed with the energy barrier of 6.4 and 7.9 kcal/mol. In the third pathway, OH addition reaction to the carbonyl carbon (C2) atom of DMC and intermediate, I2, is formed with an energy barrier of 11.9 kcal/mol. In the fourth pathway, along with CH₃O^●, methyl hydrogen carbonate is formed. For this C-O bond breaking and O-H addition reaction, the energy barrier is 27 kcal/mol. The calculated enthalpy and Gibbs energy values show that the studied initial reactions are exothermic and exoergic except the OH addition reaction. For the initial reactions, the rate constants were calculated by using canonical variational transition state theory (CVT) with small curvature tunneling (SCT) correction over the temperature range of 278-1200 K. At 298 K, the calculated rate coefficient for the in-plane and out-of-plane hydrogen atom abstraction reaction pathway is 2.30 × 10^-13 and 0.02 × 10^-13 cm³ molecule^-1 s^-1. Further, the reaction between alkyl radical intermediate formed from the first pathway and O₂ is studied. The reaction of alkyl peroxy radical intermediate with atmospheric oxidants, HO₂, NO, and NO₂ is also studied. It was found that the formic (methyl carbonic) anhydride is the end product formed from the atmospheric oxidation and secondary reactions of DMC.

Theoretical and kinetic study of the reaction of C2H3 + HO2 on the C2H3O2H potential energy surface

We systematically investigate the C₂H₃ + HO₂ reaction combined with conventional transition state theory, variable reaction coordinate transition state theory and Rice–Ramsberger–Kassel–Marcus/master-equation theory.