On the mechanism of nanoparticle formation in a flame doped by iron pentacarbonyl

In this work we have investigated the mechanism of nanoparticle synthesis in a low pressure, premixed, laminar flat flame of CH4-O2, doped with iron pentacarbonyl using a combined quartz-crystal-microbalance-particle-mass-spectrometry apparatus. We have unambiguously demonstrated that the formation of nanoparticles in iron pentacarbonyl-doped flames occurs very early, in close proximity to the burner surface, prior to the flame front. This early rise of nanoparticle mass concentration is followed by a sharp drop in nanoparticle concentration at the high temperature flame front. This "prompt" nanoparticle generation is consistent with kinetic models describing iron cluster formation. The observation of this phenomenon in a quasi-one-dimensional premixed flat flame strengthens our previous findings and points out that the "prompt" nanoparticle formation is a general phenomenon, not limited to diffusion flames. It presents a challenge and a trigger for further development of the existing mechanisms for gas phase synthesis of iron oxide particles in flames.

Fullerenes patched by flowers with octagonal core

The aromatic character of three different flowers of general formula [n:(p i,p j)n/2], namely [8:(5,7)4], [8:(6,6)4] and [8:(5,6)4], has been evaluated by means of geometric (HOMA index), energetic (heats of formation) and magnetic criteria (NICS index, exaltation of magnetic susceptibility). Also, the reactivity descriptors within the DFT approach -absolute hardness, electrophilicity, Fukui functions — have been computed. All the different methods used for estimating the aromaticity led to a unitary conclusion. Two fullerene structures, patched by the most stable 8-Sumanene flower, have been designed and evaluated by means of ab initio computations

Computational investigations on covalent dimerization/oligomerization of polyacenes: is it relevant to soot formation?

We have postulated a novel pathway that could assist in the nucleation of soot particles through covalent dimerization and oligomerizations of a variety of PAHs. DFT calculations were performed with the objective of obtaining the relative thermal stabilities and formation probabilities of oligomeric species that exploit the facile dimerization that is known to occur in linear oligoacenes. We propose that the presence of small stretches of linear oligoacence (tetracene or longer) in extended PAH, either embedded or tethered, would be adequate for enabling the formation of such dimeric and oligomeric adducts; these could then serve as nuclei for the growth of soot particles. Our studies also reveal the importance of π-stacking interactions between extended aromatic frameworks in governing the relative stabilities of the oligomeric species that are formed.

Flame synthesis of carbon nano-onions enhanced by acoustic modulation

Ethylene jet diffusion flames modulated by acoustic excitation in an atmospheric environment were used to synthesize carbon nano-onions (CNOs) on a catalytic nickel substrate. The formation of CNOs was significantly enhanced by acoustic excitation at frequencies near either the natural flickering frequency or the acoustically resonant frequency. The rate of yield of CNOs was high at 10 and 20 Hz (near the natural flickering frequency) for a sampling position z = 5 mm above the burner exit where the gas temperature was about 450-520 °C, or at 10, 20 and 30 Hz for z = 10 mm with the gas temperature ranging from 420 to 500 °C. Additionally, for both z = 5 and 10 mm, a quantity of CNOs can be obtained at 60-70 Hz, near the acoustically resonant frequency, where the gas temperature was between 620 and 720 °C. Almost no CNOs were produced for the other frequencies due to low temperature or lack of carbon sources. CNOs synthesized at low frequencies had a greater diameter and a higher degree of graphitization than those at high frequencies.

Formation mechanism of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in benzene combustion: Quantum chemical molecular dynamics simulations

High temperature quantum chemical molecular dynamics simulations on the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) formation during combustion of benzene were performed using the density-functional tight-binding (DFTB) method. Systems with varying H/C of 0.8, 0.6, 0.4, and 0.2 and temperatures of T(n)=2500 K and T(n)=3000 K were employed for the study of the PAH formation and growth mechanism, and trajectories were analyzed by recording average C:H compositions, common elementary reactions and molecular species, ring count, and other characteristic quantities as functions of time. We found that at H/C=0.8 mostly short polyacetylenic hydrocarbons were formed, and no significant PAH growth was found. At lower H/C ratio, longer polyacetylenic chains started to form and new five- and six-membered rings were created due to chain entanglement. Significant PAH growth forming only pericondensed PAHs was observed at lower H/C ratios of 0.4 and 0.2. In addition, smaller hydrocarbon species, such as C(2)H(2), C(2)H, and C(2), are constantly produced by fragmentation of hydrocarbons (unimolecular reactions) and remain common species, although they are simultaneously consumed by the H-abstraction-C(2)H(2)-addition growth mechanism. Hydrogen is found to have a clear inhibitive effect on PAH and carbon cluster growth in general, in agreement with recent experimental observations.

Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Fe(CO)5 Addition to a Laminar Premixed Hydrogen/Oxygen/Argon Flame

Low-pressure, lean, laminar, premixed hydrogen/oxygen/argon flames seeded with iron pentacarbonyl (35−170 ppm Fe(CO)5) were modeled with detailed chemistry and the results were compared to laser-induced fluorescence imaging measurements of iron atom concentration and gas-phase temperature. The model includes recent rate coefficients for the decomposition of iron pentacarbonyl and thermodynamic data. The simulated iron concentrations correspond well with the measurements with only minor discrepancies in the rise of the iron profiles at low Fe(CO)5 concentrations. In addition, it was shown that the mechanism is able to predict the effect of Fe(CO)5 on the flame speed also for lean conditions, where the model was not established yet. The major iron species, aside from atomic iron, in this flame are predicted to be FeOH and Fe(OH)2 with some FeO2 early in the flame. The observed increased flame temperatures in the presence of Fe(CO)5 are attributed to catalytic hydrogen recombination.