Shinichi Enami

Fenton chemistry at aqueous interfaces

Significance The Fenton reaction, Fe2+ + H2O2, plays fundamental roles in vivo and in advanced oxidation processes. Its mechanism and the identity of the intermediates involved, however, remain controversial. Here we present direct, mass-specific evidence of the prompt formation of mono- and poly-iron FeIV=O (ferryl) species on the surface of aqueous FeCl2 microjets exposed to gaseous H2O2 or O3 beams. Remarkably, Fe2+ ions at the aqueous surface react with H2O2 and O3 >103 times faster than Fe(H2O)62+ in bulk water. Our results suggest that interfacial Fenton and Fenton-like chemistries could play a more significant role than hitherto envisioned. In a fundamental process throughout nature, reduced iron unleashes the oxidative power of hydrogen peroxide into reactive intermediates. However, notwithstanding much work, the mechanism by which Fe2+ catalyzes H2O2 oxidations and the identity of the participating intermediates remain controversial. Here we report the prompt formation of O=FeIVCl3− and chloride-bridged di-iron O=FeIV·Cl·FeIICl4− and O=FeIV·Cl·FeIIICl5− ferryl species, in addition to FeIIICl4−, on the surface of aqueous FeCl2 microjets exposed to gaseous H2O2 or O3 beams for <50 μs. The unambiguous identification of such species in situ via online electrospray mass spectrometry let us investigate their individual dependences on Fe2+, H2O2, O3, and H+ concentrations, and their responses to tert-butanol (an ·OH scavenger) and DMSO (an O-atom acceptor) cosolutes. We found that (i) mass spectra are not affected by excess tert-butanol, i.e., the detected species are primary products whose formation does not involve ·OH radicals, and (ii) the di-iron ferryls, but not O=FeIVCl3−, can be fully quenched by DMSO under present conditions. We infer that interfacial Fe(H2O)n2+ ions react with H2O2 and O3 >103 times faster than Fe(H2O)62+ in bulk water via a process that favors inner-sphere two-electron O-atom over outer-sphere one-electron transfers. The higher reactivity of di-iron ferryls vs. O=FeIVCl3− as O-atom donors implicates the electronic coupling of mixed-valence iron centers in the weakening of the FeIV–O bond in poly-iron ferryl species.

Extensive H-atom abstraction from benzoate by OH-radicals at the air–water interface

Much is known about OH-radical chemistry in the gas-phase and bulk water. Important atmospheric and biological processes, however, involve little investigated OH-radical reactions at aqueous interfaces with hydrophobic media. Here, we report the online mass-specific identification of the products and intermediates generated on the surface of aqueous (H2O, D2O) benzoate-h5 and -d5 microjets by ∼8 ns ˙OH(g) pulses in air at 1 atm. Isotopic labeling lets us unambiguously identify the phenylperoxyl radicals that ensue H-abstraction from the aromatic ring and establish a lower bound (>26%) to this process as it takes place in the interfacial water nanolayers probed by our experiments. The significant extent of H-abstraction vs. its negligible contribution both in the gas-phase and bulk water underscores the unique properties of the air-water interface as a reaction medium. The enhancement of H-atom abstraction in interfacial water is ascribed, in part, to the relative destabilization of a more polar transition state for OH-radical addition vs. H-abstraction due to incomplete hydration at the low water densities prevalent therein.

Reactions of Criegee Intermediates with Benzoic Acid at the Gas/Liquid Interface

Secondary organic aerosol (SOA) found in polluted mega-cities contains benzoic acid (BA) as a major organic acid in addition to a variety of species including alkenes. In polluted air, ozone could be a major oxidizer for SOA and induces subsequent reactions involving Criegee intermediates (CIs, carbonyl oxide, RRC•-O-O•/RRC═O+-O-) formed by the -C═C- + O3 reaction at the gas/liquid interface. The possibility that abundant BA could be an effective scavenger of CIs at the interface remains to be investigated by direct experiments. Here, we showed that amphiphilic BA is able to compete with water molecules for the CIs produced in the prompt ozonolysis of β-caryophyllene on the surface of a water/acetonitrile solvent microjet by generating hitherto uncharacterized C22 ester hydroperoxide products. Competition between BA vs octanoic acid vs cis-pinonic acid toward CIs reveals that BA is a much less-efficient scavenger of CIs on aqueous organic surfaces. We attribute it to the surface-specific orientation of BA at the gas/liquid interface, where the reactive -C(O)OH group is fully hydrated and not available for CIs generated at the topmost layers.

Reactivity of Monoterpene Criegee Intermediates at Gas–Liquid Interfaces

Biogenic monoterpenes are major sources of Criegee intermediates (CIs) in the troposphere. Recent studies underscored the importance of their heterogeneous chemistry. The study of monoterpene CI reactions on liquid surfaces, however, is challenging due to the lack of suitable probes. Here, we report the first mass spectrometric detection of the intermediates and products, which include labile hydroperoxides, from reactions of CIs of representative monoterpenes (α-terpinene, γ-terpinene, terpinolene, d-limonene, α-pinene) with water, cis-pinonic acid (CPA) and octanoic acid (OA) on the surface of liquid microjets. Significantly, the relative yields of α-hydroxy-hydroperoxides production from CIs hydration at the gas-liquid interface-α-terpinene (1.00) ≫ d-limonene (0.18) > γ-terpinene (0.11) ∼ terpinolene (0.10) ≫ α-pinene (0.01)-do not track the rate constants of their gas-phase ozonolyses. Notably, in contrast with the inertness of the other CIs, the CIs derived from α-terpinene ozonolysis readily react with CPA and OA to produce C20 and C18 ester hydroperoxides, respectively. Present results reveal hitherto unknown structural effects on the reactivities of CIs at aqueous interfaces.