Beni B. Dangi

An experimental and theoretical study on the formation of 2-methylnaphthalene (C11H10/C11H3D7) in the reactions of the para-tolyl (C7H7) and para-tolyl-d7 (C7D7) with vinylacetylene (C4H4).

We present for the very first time single collision experimental evidence that a methyl-substituted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH)-2-methylnaphthalene-can be formed without an entrance barrier via indirect scattering dynamics through a bimolecular collision of two non-PAH reactants: the para-tolyl radical and vinylacetylene. Theory shows that this reaction is initiated by the addition of the para-tolyl radical to either the terminal acetylene carbon (C(4)) or a vinyl carbon (C(1)) leading eventually to two distinct radical intermediates. Importantly, addition at C(1) was found to be barrierless via a van der Waals complex implying this mechanism can play a key role in forming methyl substituted PAHs in low temperature extreme environments such as the interstellar medium and hydrocarbon-rich atmospheres of planets and their moons in the outer Solar System. Both reaction pathways involve a sequence of isomerizations via hydrogen transfer, ring closure, ring-opening and final hydrogen dissociation through tight exit transition states to form 2-methylnaphthalene in an overall exoergic process. Less favorable pathways leading to monocyclic products are also found. Our studies predict that reactions of substituted aromatic radicals can mechanistically deliver odd-numbered PAHs which are formed in significant quantities in the combustion of fossil fuels.

Formation of 6-methyl-1,4-dihydronaphthalene in the reaction of the p-tolyl radical with 1,3-butadiene under single-collision conditions.

Crossed molecular beam reactions of p-tolyl (C7H7) plus 1,3-butadiene (C4H6), p-tolyl (C7H7) plus 1,3-butadiene-d6 (C4D6), and p-tolyl-d7 (C7D7) plus 1,3-butadiene (C4H6) were carried out under single-collision conditions at collision energies of about 55 kJ mol(-1). 6-Methyl-1,4-dihydronaphthalene was identified as the major reaction product formed at fractions of about 94% with the monocyclic isomer (trans-1-p-tolyl-1,3-butadiene) contributing only about 6%. The reaction is initiated by barrierless addition of the p-tolyl radical to the terminal carbon atom of the 1,3-butadiene via a van der Waals complex. The collision complex isomerizes via cyclization to a bicyclic intermediate, which then ejects a hydrogen atom from the bridging carbon to form 6-methyl-1,4-dihydronaphthalene through a tight exit transition state located about 27 kJ mol(-1) above the separated products. This is the dominant channel under the present experimental conditions. Alternatively, the collision complex can also undergo hydrogen ejection to form trans-1-p-tolyl-1,3-butadiene; this is a minor contributor to the present experiment. The de facto barrierless formation of a methyl-substituted aromatic hydrocarbons by dehydrogenation via a single event represents an important step in the formation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and their partially hydrogenated analogues in combustion flames and the interstellar medium.

A crossed molecular beam and ab-initio investigation of the reaction of boron monoxide (BO; X2Σ+) with methylacetylene (CH3CCH; X1A1): competing atomic hydrogen and methyl loss pathways.

The gas-phase reaction of boron monoxide ((11)BO; X(2)Σ(+)) with methylacetylene (CH3CCH; X(1)A1) was investigated experimentally using crossed molecular beam technique at a collision energy of 22.7 kJ mol(-1) and theoretically using state of the art electronic structure calculation, for the first time. The scattering dynamics were found to be indirect (complex forming reaction) and the reaction proceeded through the barrier-less formation of a van-der-Waals complex ((11)BOC3H4) followed by isomerization via the addition of (11)BO(X(2)Σ(+)) to the C1 and/or C2 carbon atom of methylacetylene through submerged barriers. The resulting (11)BOC3H4 doublet radical intermediates underwent unimolecular decomposition involving three competing reaction mechanisms via two distinct atomic hydrogen losses and a methyl group elimination. Utilizing partially deuterated methylacetylene reactants (CD3CCH; CH3CCD), we revealed that the initial addition of (11)BO(X(2)Σ(+)) to the C1 carbon atom of methylacetylene was followed by hydrogen loss from the acetylenic carbon atom (C1) and from the methyl group (C3) leading to 1-propynyl boron monoxide (CH3CC(11)BO) and propadienyl boron monoxide (CH2CCH(11)BO), respectively. Addition of (11)BO(X(2)Σ(+)) to the C1 of methylacetylene followed by the migration of the boronyl group to the C2 carbon atom and/or an initial addition of (11)BO(X(2)Σ(+)) to the sterically less accessible C2 carbon atom of methylacetylene was followed by loss of a methyl group leading to the ethynyl boron monoxide product (HCC(11)BO) in an overall exoergic reaction (78 ± 23 kJ mol(-1)). The branching ratios of these channels forming CH2CCH(11)BO, CH3CC(11)BO, and HCC(11)BO were derived to be 4 ± 3%, 40 ± 5%, and 56 ± 15%, respectively; these data are in excellent agreement with the calculated branching ratios using statistical RRKM theory yielding 1%, 38%, and 61%, respectively.

Gas-phase synthesis of phenyl oxoborane (C6H5BO) via the reaction of boron monoxide with benzene.

Organyl oxoboranes (RBO) are valuable reagents in organic synthesis due to their role in Suzuki coupling reactions. However, organyl oxoboranes (RBO) are only found in trimeric forms (RBO3) commonly known as boronic acids or boroxins; obtaining their monomers has proved a complex endeavor. Here, we demonstrate an oligomerization-free formation of organyl oxoborane (RBO) monomers in the gas phase by a radical substitution reaction under single-collision conditions in the gas phase. Using the cross molecular beams technique, phenyl oxoborane (C6H5BO) is formed through the reaction of boronyl radicals (BO) with benzene (C6H6). The reaction is indirect, initially forming a van der Waals complex that isomerizes below the energy of the reactants and eventually forming phenyl oxoborane by hydrogen emission in an overall exoergic radical-hydrogen atom exchange mechanism.

LOW TEMPERATURE FORMATION OF NITROGEN-SUBSTITUTED POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS (PANHs)—BARRIERLESS ROUTES TO DIHYDRO(iso)QUINOLINES

Meteorites contain bio-relevant molecules such as vitamins and nucleobases, which consist of aromatic structures with embedded nitrogen atoms. Questions remain over the chemical mechanisms responsible for the formation of nitrogen-substituted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PANHs) in extraterrestrial environments. By exploiting single collision conditions, we show that a radical mediated bimolecular collision between pyridyl radicals and 1,3-butadiene in the gas phase forms nitrogen-substituted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PANHs) 1,4-dihydroquinoline and to a minor amount 1,4-dihydroisoquinoline. The reaction proceeds through the formation of a van der Waals complex, which circumnavigates the entrance barrier implying it can operate at very low kinetic energy and therefore at low temperatures of 10 K as present in cold molecular clouds such as TMC-1. The discovery of facile de facto barrierless exoergic reaction mechanisms leading to PANH formation could play an important role in providing a population of aromatic structures upon which further photo-processing of ice condensates could occur to form nucleobases.

Combined Experimental and Theoretical Study on the Formation of the Elusive 2-Methyl-1-silacycloprop-2-enylidene Molecule under Single Collision Conditions via Reactions of the Silylidyne Radical (SiH; X(2)Π) with Allene (H2CCCH2; X(1)A1) and D4-Allene (D2CCCD2; X(1)A1).

The crossed molecular beam reactions of the ground-state silylidyne radical (SiH; X(2)Π) with allene (H2CCCH2; X(1)A1) and D4-allene (D2CCCD2; X(1)A1) were carried out at collision energies of 30 kJ mol(-1). Electronic structure calculations propose that the reaction of silylidyne with allene has no entrance barrier and is initiated by silylidyne addition to the π electron density of allene either to one carbon atom (C1/C2) or to both carbon atoms simultaneously via indirect (complex forming) reaction dynamics. The initially formed addition complexes isomerize via two distinct reaction pathways, both leading eventually to a cyclic SiC3H5 intermediate. The latter decomposes through a loose exit transition state via an atomic hydrogen loss perpendicularly to the plane of the decomposing complex (sideways scattering) in an overall exoergic reaction (experimentally: -19 ± 13 kJ mol(-1); computationally: -5 ± 3 kJ mol(-1)). This hydrogen loss yields the hitherto elusive 2-methyl-1-silacycloprop-2-enylidene molecule (c-SiC3H4), which can be derived from the closed-shell cyclopropenylidene molecule (c-C3H2) by replacing a hydrogen atom with a methyl group and the carbene carbon atom by the isovalent silicon atom. The synthesis of the 2-methyl-1-silacycloprop-2-enylidene molecule in the bimolecular gas-phase reaction of silylidyne with allene enriches our understanding toward the formation of organosilicon species in the gas phase of the interstellar medium in particular via exoergic reactions of no entrance barrier. This facile route to 2-methyl-1-silacycloprop-2-enylidene via a silylidyne radical reaction with allene opens up a versatile approach to form hitherto poorly characterized silicon-bearing species in extraterrestrial environments; this reaction class might represent the missing link, leading from silicon-bearing radicals via organosilicon chemistry eventually to silicon-carbon-rich interstellar grains even in cold molecular clouds where temperatures are as low as 10 K.

A Combined Experimental and Theoretical Study on the Gas‐Phase Synthesis of Toluene under Single Collision Conditions

physical-organic chemistry communities. Toluene portrays the simplest representative of an alkyl-substituted benzene molecule with the methyl group enhancing the reactivity toward radical and electrophile aromatic substitution compared to benzene. It is further considered as a crucial building block to form methyl-substituted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) such as 1and 2-methylnaphthalene. In combustion flames, the formation of phenylacetylene 2, styrene 3, and biphenyl 4 (Scheme 1) can be rationalized through phenyl addition. Atomic hydrogen is eliminated upon reaction of the phenyl radical with acetylene (C2H2), [14] ethylene (C2H4), [15] and benzene (C6H6). [16] The analogous reaction of the phenyl radical with methane (CH4) does not lead to toluene, but solely to benzene plus a methyl radical (CH3) through hydrogen abstraction. [17] Consequently, the formation routes of toluene in combustion flames and in the interstellar medium have not been unraveled to date. Here, we show that the reaction of the ethynyl radical (CCH; C2H) with isoprene (2-methyl-1,3-butadiene; C5H8) presents a facile, barrierless route to the toluene molecule in a single collision event in the gas phase through the reaction of two acyclic precursor molecules. This reaction is also of interest to the physical-organic chemistry community since it represents a benchmark system to untangle the formation of a methylsubstituted aromatic molecule through radical substitution reactions involving successive isomerizations through cyclization and hydrogen shifts. Reactive scattering signal from the reaction of [D1]ethynyl radical C2D(X S) with isoprene (C5H8; X A’) was monitored at mass-to-charge ratios (m/z) of 93 (C7H7D ), 92 (C7H6D /C7H8 ), and 91 (C7H5D /C7H7 ). The signal atm/ z= 93 originates from the C7H7D product(s) formed through atomic hydrogen loss, whereas ion counts at m/z= 92 could have two contributions: an atomic deuterium loss connected to the formation of C7H8 products or dissociative ionization of C7H7D products in the electron impact ionizer of the detector. The signal at m/z= 91 may depict two contributions from dissociative electron impact ionization of C7H7D and/or C7H6D product molecules. However, all data could be fit with the product mass combinations of 93 amu (C7H7D) plus 1 amu (H). This finding suggests the existence of a [D1]ethynyl (C2D, 26 amu) versus atomic hydrogen replacement channel and the gas-phase synthesis of a molecule with the molecular formula C7H7D (Figure 1). Considering that the [D1]ethynyl reactant does not have a hydrogen atom, the hydrogen atom is emitted from the isoprene molecule. The laboratory angular distribution (Figure 2) extends at least 408 within the scattering plane and peaks close to the center-of-mass angle at 41.1 1.28. These results suggest indirect scattering dynamics through C7H8D complex(es). Scheme 1. Toluene 1, phenylacetylene 2, styrene 3, and biphenyl 4.

Reaction dynamics of the 4-methylphenyl radical (p-tolyl) with 1,2-butadiene (1-methylallene): are methyl groups purely spectators?

The reactions of the 4-tolyl radical (C6H4CH3) and of the D7-4-tolyl radical (C6D4CD3) with 1,2-butadiene (C4H6) have been probed in crossed molecular beams under single collision conditions at a collision energy of about 54 kJ mol(-1) and studied theoretically using ab initio G3(MP2,CC)//B3LYP/6-311G** and statistical RRKM calculations. The results show that the reaction proceeds via indirect scattering dynamics through the formation of a van-der-Waals complex followed by the addition of the radical center of the 4-tolyl radical to the C1 or C3 carbon atoms of 1,2-butadiene. The collision complexes then isomerize by migration of the tolyl group from the C1 (C3) to the C2 carbon atom of the 1,2-butadiene moiety. The resulting intermediate undergoes unimolecular decomposition via elimination of a hydrogen atom from the methyl group of the 1,2-butadiene moiety through a rather loose exit transition state leading to 2-para-tolyl-1,3-butadiene (p4), which likely presents the major reaction product. Our observation combined with theoretical calculations suggest that one methyl group (at the phenyl group) acts as a spectator in the reaction, whereas the other one (at the allene moiety) is actively engaged in the underlying chemical dynamics. On the contrary to the reaction of the phenyl radical with allene, which leads to the formation of indene, the substitution of a hydrogen atom by a methyl group in allene essentially eliminates the formation of bicyclic PAHs such as substituted indenes in the 4-tolyl plus 1,2-butadiene reaction.

A Combined Experimental and Theoretical Study on the Formation of the 2-Methyl-1-silacycloprop-2-enylidene Molecule via the Crossed Beam Reactions of the Silylidyne Radical (SiH; X2Π) with Methylacetylene (CH3CCH; X1A1) and D4-Methylacetylene (CD3CCD; X1A1)

The bimolecular gas-phase reactions of the ground-state silylidyne radical (SiH; X(2)Π) with methylacetylene (CH3CCH; X(1)A1) and D4-methylacetylene (CD3CCD; X(1)A1) were explored at collision energies of 30 kJ mol(-1) under single-collision conditions exploiting the crossed molecular beam technique and complemented by electronic structure calculations. These studies reveal that the reactions follow indirect scattering dynamics, have no entrance barriers, and are initiated by the addition of the silylidyne radical to the carbon-carbon triple bond of the methylacetylene molecule either to one carbon atom (C1; [i1]/[i2]) or to both carbon atoms concurrently (C1-C2; [i3]). The collision complexes [i1]/[i2] eventually isomerize via ring-closure to the c-SiC3H5 doublet radical intermediate [i3], which is identified as the decomposing reaction intermediate. The hydrogen atom is emitted almost perpendicularly to the rotational plane of the fragmenting complex resulting in a sideways scattering dynamics with the reaction being overall exoergic by -12 ± 11 kJ mol(-1) (experimental) and -1 ± 3 kJ mol(-1) (computational) to form the cyclic 2-methyl-1-silacycloprop-2-enylidene molecule (c-SiC3H4; p1). In line with computational data, experiments of silylidyne with D4-methylacetylene (CD3CCD; X(1)A1) depict that the hydrogen is emitted solely from the silylidyne moiety but not from methylacetylene. The dynamics are compared to those of the related D1-silylidyne (SiD; X(2)Π)-acetylene (HCCH; X(1)Σg(+)) reaction studied previously in our group, and from there, we discovered that the methyl group acts primarily as a spectator in the title reaction. The formation of 2-methyl-1-silacycloprop-2-enylidene under single-collision conditions via a bimolecular gas-phase reaction augments our knowledge of the hitherto poorly understood silylidyne (SiH; X(2)Π) radical reactions with small hydrocarbon molecules leading to the synthesis of organosilicon molecules in cold molecular clouds and in carbon-rich circumstellar envelopes.

Combined Crossed Molecular Beam and Ab Initio Investigation of the Reaction of Boron Monoxide (BO; X2Σ+) with 1,3-Butadiene (CH2CHCHCH2; X1Ag) and Its Deuterated Counterparts

The reactions of the boron monoxide ((11)BO; X(2)Σ(+)) radical with 1,3-butadiene (CH2CHCHCH2; X(1)Ag) and its partially deuterated counterparts, 1,3-butadiene-d2 (CH2CDCDCH2; X(1)Ag) and 1,3-butadiene-d4 (CD2CHCHCD2; X(1)Ag), were investigated under single collision conditions exploiting a crossed molecular beams machine. The experimental data were combined with the state-of-the-art ab initio electronic structure calculations and statistical RRKM calculations to investigate the underlying chemical reaction dynamics and reaction mechanisms computationally. Our investigations revealed that the reaction followed indirect scattering dynamics through the formation of (11)BOC4H6 doublet radical intermediates via the barrierless addition of the (11)BO radical to the terminal carbon atom (C1/C4) and/or the central carbon atom (C2/C3) of 1,3-butadiene. The resulting long-lived (11)BOC4H6 intermediate(s) underwent isomerization and/or unimolecular decomposition involving eventually at least two distinct atomic hydrogen loss pathways to 1,3-butadienyl-1-oxoboranes (CH2CHCHCH(11)BO) and 1,3-butadienyl-2-oxoboranes (CH2C ((11)BO)CHCH2) in overall exoergic reactions via tight exit transition states. Utilizing partially deuterated 1,3-butadiene-d2 and -d4, we revealed that the hydrogen loss from the methylene moiety (CH2) dominated with 70 ± 10% compared to an atomic hydrogen loss from the methylidyne group (CH) of only 30 ± 10%; these data agree nicely with the theoretically predicted branching ratio of 80% versus 19%.