Ireneusz Janik

Carbonate Radical Formation in Radiolysis of Sodium Carbonate and Bicarbonate Solutions up to 250 °C and the Mechanism of its Second Order Decay

Pulse radiolysis experiments published several years ago (J. Phys. Chem. A, 2002, 106, 2430) raised the possibility that the carbonate radical formed from reaction of *OH radicals with either HCO(3)(-) or CO(3)(2-) might actually exist predominantly as a dimer form, for example, *(CO(3))(2)(3-). In this work we re-examine the data upon which this suggestion was based and find that the original data analysis is flawed. A major omission of the original analysis is the recombination reaction *OH + *CO(3)(-) --> HOOCO(2)(-). Upon reanalysis of the published data for sodium bicarbonate solutions and analysis of new transient absorption data we are able to establish the rate constant for this reaction up to 250 degrees C. The mechanism for the second-order self-recombination of the carbonate radical has never been convincingly demonstrated. From a combination of literature data and new transient absorption experiments in the 1-400 ms regime, we are able to show that the mechanism involves pre-equilibrium formation of a C(2)O(6)(2-) dimer, which dissociates to CO(2) and peroxymonocarbonate anion: *CO3(-)+*CO3(-)<-->C2O6(2-)-->CO2+O2COO(2-) *CO3(-) reacts with the product peroxymonocarbonate anion, producing a peroxymonocarbonate radical *O2COO(-), which can also recombine with the carbonate radical: *CO3(-)+CO4(2-)-->*CO4(-)+CO3(2-) *CO3(-)+CO4(-)-->C2O7(2-).

Solvated Electron Extinction Coefficient and Oscillator Strength in High Temperature Water

The decadic extinction coefficient of the hydrated electron is reported for the absorption maximum from room temperature to 380 degrees C. The extinction coefficient is established by relating the transient absorption of the hydrated electrons in the presence of a scavenger to the concentration of stable product produced in the same experiment. Scavengers used in this report are SF(6,) N(2)O, and methyl viologen. The room temperature value is established as 22,500 M(-1) cm(-1), higher by 10-20% than values used over the last several decades. We demonstrate how previous workers arrived at a low value by incorrect choice of a radiolysis yield value. With this revision, the integrated oscillator strength, corrected by refractive index, is definitely (ca. 10%) larger than unity. This result is fully consistent with EPR and resonance Raman results which indicate mixing of the hydrated electron wave function with solvent electronic orbitals. Oscillator strength appears to be conserved vs temperature.

The early events in the OH radical oxidation of dimethyl sulfide in water

The time-resolved Raman observation of a prototype of the hetero-atom three electron bonds (-X-OH) that often form on encounter of the OH radical with chemical species in water is reported. In spite of their wide chemical and biochemical importance, no experimental structural information exists, thus far, on any such bond in solution or in the gas phase. The nature of the >S-O bond formed on the reaction of the OH radical with dimethyl sulfide in water, investigated in the present work, would necessitate a reexamination of the existing reaction mechanisms in related biological systems and development of the appropriate computational methods.

The nature of the CO2 (-) radical anion in water.

The reductive conversion of CO2 into industrial products (e.g., oxalic acid, formic acid, methanol) can occur via aqueous CO2 (-) as a transient intermediate. While the formation, structure, and reaction pathways of this radical anion have been modelled for decades using various spectroscopic and theoretical approaches, we present here, for the first time, a vibrational spectroscopic investigation in liquid water, using pulse radiolysis time-resolved resonance Raman spectroscopy for its preparation and observation. Excitation of the radical in resonance with its 235 nm absorption displays a transient Raman band at 1298 cm(-1), attributed to the symmetric CO stretch, which is at ∼45 cm(-1) higher frequency than in inert matrices. Isotopic substitution at C ((13)CO2 (-)) shifts the frequency downwards by 22 cm(-1), which confirms its origin and the assignment. A Raman band of moderate intensity compared to the stronger 1298 cm(-1) band also appears at 742 cm(-1) and is assignable to the OCO bending mode. A reasonable resonance enhancement of this mode is possible only in a bent CO2 (-)(C2v/Cs) geometry. These resonance Raman features suggest a strong solute-solvent interaction, the water molecules acting as constituents of the radical structure, rather than exerting a minor solvent perturbation. However, there is no evidence of the non-equivalence (Cs) of the two CO bonds. A surprising resonance Raman feature is the lack of overtones of the symmetric CO stretch, which we interpret due to the detachment of the electron from the CO2 (-) moiety towards the solvation shell. Electron detachment occurs at the energies of 0.28 ± 0.03 eV or higher with respect to the zero point energy of the ground electronic state. The issue of acid-base equilibrium of the radical, which has been in contention for decades, as reflected in a wide variation in the reported pKa (-0.2 to 3.9), has been resolved. A value of 3.4 ± 0.2 measured in this work is consistent with the vibrational properties, bond structure, and charge distribution in aqueous CO2 (-).

The nature of the superoxide radical anion in water

Vibrational properties of the superoxide radical anion (O2(-●) in liquid water have been experimentally investigated for the first time. The stretching frequency, its shift from the gas-phase to aqueous solution, anharmonicity constant, and the Raman bandwidths provide an insight into the radical-water interactions and the hydration cage. In view of the spectroscopic information obtained in this work, the structural models based on molecular dynamics simulation in solution and gas-phase infrared studies of the water molecules bound to O2(-●) are critically examined.

Comparison of Acid Generation in EUV Lithography Films of Poly(4-hydroxystyrene) (PHS) and Noria Adamantyl Ester (Noria-AD50)

The mechanism for acid production in phenolic extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography films containing triphenylsulfonium triflate (Ph(3)S(+)TfO(-)) acid generator has been investigated by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy and by use of the acid indicator coumarin 6 (C6). Gamma radiolysis was substituted for the EUV radiation with the assumption that the chemistry generated by ionization of the matrix does not depend on the ionization source. Poly(4-hydroxystyrene) (PHS) was first investigated as a well-studied standard, after which the water-wheel-like cyclic oligomer derivative containing pendant adamantyl ester groups, noria-AD(50), was investigated. EPR measurements confirm that the dominant free radical product is a phenoxyl derivative (PHS-O(•) or noria-O(•)) that exhibits quite slow stretched exponential recombination kinetics at room temperature. Also observed at 77 K was the presence of a significant hydrogen atom product of radiolysis. The G value or yield of acid production in thin lithography films was measured with the C6 indicator on a fused silica substrate. It was found that a significant amount of acid is generated via energy transfer from the irradiated fused-silica substrate to the Ph(3)S(+)TfO(-) in the films. By varying the film thickness on the substrates, the substrate effect on the acid yield was quantitatively determined. After subtraction of the contribution from the substrates, the acid yield G value in the PHS film with 10 wt % Ph(3)S(+)TfO(-) and 5 wt % C6 was determined to be 2.5 ± 0.3 protons per 100 eV of radiation. The acid yield of noria-AD(50) films was found to be 3.2 ± 0.3 protons per 100 eV.

Vacuum ultraviolet spectroscopy of the lowest-lying electronic state in subcritical and supercritical water

The nature and extent of hydrogen bonding in water has been scrutinized for decades, including how it manifests in optical properties. Here we report vacuum ultraviolet absorption spectra for the lowest-lying electronic state of subcritical and supercritical water. For subcritical water, the spectrum redshifts considerably with increasing temperature, demonstrating the gradual breakdown of the hydrogen-bond network. Tuning the density at 381 °C gives insight into the extent of hydrogen bonding in supercritical water. The known gas-phase spectrum, including its vibronic structure, is duplicated in the low-density limit. With increasing density, the spectrum blueshifts and the vibronic structure is quenched as the water monomer becomes electronically perturbed. Fits to the supercritical water spectra demonstrate consistency with dimer/trimer fractions calculated from the water virial equation of state and equilibrium constants. Using the known water dimer interaction potential, we estimate the critical distance between molecules (ca. 4.5 Å) needed to explain the vibronic structure quenching.

Dissociative electron attachment to triflates

Gas phase studies of dissociative electron attachment to simple alkyl (CF(3)SO(3)CH(3)) and aryl (C(6)H(5)SO(3)CF(3) and CF(3)SO(3)C(6)H(4)CH(3)) triflates, model molecules of nonionic photoacid generators for modern lithographic applications, were performed. The fragmentation pathways under electron impact below 10 eV were identified by means of crossed electron-molecular beam mass spectrometry. Major dissociation channels involved C-O, S-O, or C-S bond scissions in the triflate moiety leading to the formation of triflate (OTf(-)), triflyl (Tf(-)), or sulfonate (RSO(3)(-)) anions, respectively. A resonance leading to C-O bond breakage and OTf(-) formation in alkyl triflates occurred at electron energies about 0.5 eV lower than the corresponding resonance in aryl triflates. A resonance leading to S-O bond breakage and Tf(-) formation in aryl triflates occurred surprisingly at the same electron energies as C-O bond breakage. In case of alkyl triflates S-O bond breakage required 1.4 eV higher electron energies to occur and proceeded with substantially lower yields than in aryl triflates. C-S bond scission occurred for all presently studied triflates at energies close to 3 eV.

Design of an ultrashort optical transmission cell for vacuum ultraviolet spectroscopy of supercritical fluids.

We present the design and characteristics of an ultrathin flow cell optimized for vacuum ultraviolet transmission spectroscopy experiments on supercritical fluids. The cell operates satisfactorily at pressures up to 300 bar and temperatures up to 390 °C. The variable path length concept of the cell allows for optical transmission studies of analytes ranging from dense condensed-phase systems to gas-phase systems. The path length of the cell can be adjusted from hundreds of nanometers to hundreds of micrometers by an exchange of a variable thickness spacer sandwiched between two sapphire windows. In the path length range from nanometers to single micrometers, metal vapor deposited on one or both of the two sandwiched optical windows constitute the spacer. Spacers with thicknesses of 2 μm and greater can be constructed from simple commercially available metal foils. The cell has been used to measure the lowest-lying absorption band of water in both the vapor and condensed phases from room temperature up to and above the critical point. It has also found application in the studies of aqueous ions and nonaqueous liquids including various common organic solvents and carbon dioxide.