Stephen J. Klippenstein

A KINETIC DATABASE FOR ASTROCHEMISTRY (KIDA)

We present a novel chemical database for gas-phase astrochemistry. Named the KInetic Database for Astrochemistry (KIDA), this database consists of gas-phase reactions with rate coefficients and uncertainties that will be vetted to the greatest extent possible. Submissions of measured and calculated rate coefficients are welcome, and will be studied by experts before inclusion into the database. Besides providing kinetic information for the interstellar medium, KIDA is planned to contain such data for planetary atmospheres and for circumstellar envelopes. Each year, a subset of the reactions in the database (kida.uva) will be provided as a network for the simulation of the chemistry of dense interstellar clouds with temperatures between 10 K and 300 K. We also provide a code, named Nahoon, to study the time-dependent gas-phase chemistry of zero-dimensional and one-dimensional interstellar sources.

Variational optimizations in the Rice–Ramsperger–Kassel–Marcus theory calculations for unimolecular dissociations with no reverse barrier

A method is described for variationally optimizing not only the value of the reaction coordinate but also its definition in transition state theory calculations for reactions without a barrier. In this method the reaction coordinate is assumed to be described by the distance from a point fixed in one of the fragments to another point fixed in the other fragment. For linear fragments the fixed points are chosen along the fragment axes whereas for nonlinear fragments each fixed point may be chosen anywhere within a three‐dimensional fragment‐fixed coordinate system. Results of the variational optimization of the distance and the choices for the fixed points are reported for the dissociation of NCNO into CN and NO. The optimized reaction coordinate is seen in this case to correspond to each of the fixed points being outside of the actual fragment towards the overall center‐of‐mass. Comparison is made with previous calculations based on bond length and center‐of‐mass separation distance reaction coordinates, ...

Reformulation and solution of the master equation for multiple-well chemical reactions.

We consider an alternative formulation of the master equation for complex-forming chemical reactions with multiple wells and bimolecular products. Within this formulation the dynamical phase space consists of only the microscopic populations of the various isomers making up the reactive complex, while the bimolecular reactants and products are treated equally as sources and sinks. This reformulation yields compact expressions for the phenomenological rate coefficients describing all chemical processes, i.e., internal isomerization reactions, bimolecular-to-bimolecular reactions, isomer-to-bimolecular reactions, and bimolecular-to-isomer reactions. The applicability of the detailed balance condition is discussed and confirmed. We also consider the situation where some of the chemical eigenvalues approach the energy relaxation time scale and show how to modify the phenomenological rate coefficients so that they retain their validity.

Predictive theory for the combination kinetics of two alkyl radicals

An ab initio transition state theory based procedure for accurately predicting the combination kinetics of two alkyl radicals is described. This procedure employs direct evaluations of the orientation dependent interaction energies at the CASPT2/cc-pvdz level within variable reaction coordinate transition state theory (VRC-TST). One-dimensional corrections to these energies are obtained from CAS+1+2/aug-cc-pvtz calculations for CH3 + CH3 along its combination reaction path. Direct CAS+1+2/aug-cc-pvtz calculations demonstrate that, at least for the purpose of predicting the kinetics, the corrected CASPT2/cc-pvdz potential energy surface is an accurate approximation to the CAS+1+2/aug-cc-pvtz surface. Furthermore, direct trajectory simulations, performed at the B3LYP/6-31G* level, indicate that there is little local recrossing of the optimal VRC transition state dividing surface. The corrected CASPT2/cc-pvdz potential is employed in obtaining direct VRC-TST kinetic predictions for the self and cross combinations of methyl, ethyl, iso-propyl, and tert-butyl radicals. Comparisons with experiment suggest that the present dynamically corrected VRC-TST approach provides quantitatively accurate predictions for the capture rate. Each additional methyl substituent adjacent to a radical site is found to reduce the rate coefficient by about a factor of two. In each instance, the rate coefficients are predicted to decrease quite substantially with increasing temperature, with the more sterically hindered reactants having a more rapid decrease. The simple geometric mean rule, relating the capture rate for the cross reaction to those for the self-reactions, is in remarkably good agreement with the more detailed predictions. With suitable generalizations the present approach should be applicable to a wide array of radical-radical combination reactions.

Role of O2 + QOOH in Low-Temperature Ignition of Propane. 1. Temperature and Pressure Dependent Rate Coefficients

The kinetics of the reaction of molecular oxygen with hydroperoxyalkyl radicals have been studied theoretically. These reactions, often referred to as second O(2) addition, or O(2) + QOOH reactions, are believed to be responsible for low-temperature chain branching in hydrocarbon oxidation. The O(2) + propyl system was chosen as a model system. High-level ab initio calculations of the C(3)H(7)O(2) and C(3)H(7)O(4) potential energy surfaces are coupled with RRKM master equation methods to compute the temperature and pressure dependence of the rate coefficients. Variable reaction coordinate transition-state theory is used to characterize the barrierless transition states for the O(2) + QOOH addition reactions as well as subsequent C(3)H(6)O(3) dissociation reactions. A simple kinetic mechanism is developed to illustrate the conditions under which the second O(2) addition increases the number of radicals. The sequential reactions O(2) + QOOH → OOQOOH → OH + keto-hydroperoxide → OH + OH + oxy-radical and the corresponding formally direct (or well skipping) reaction O(2) + QOOH → OH + OH + oxy-radical increase the total number of radicals. Chain branching through this reaction is maximized in the temperature range 600-900 K for pressures between 0.1 and 10 atm. The results confirm that n-propyl is the smallest alkyl radical to exhibit the low-temperature combustion properties of larger alkyl radicals, but n-butyl is perhaps a truer combustion archetype.

Application of unimolecular reaction rate theory for highly flexible transition states to the dissociation of CH2CO into CH2 and CO

A previously described implementation of Rice–Ramsberger–Kassel–Marcus (RRKM) theory for unimolecular dissociation processes involving a highly flexible transition state is applied to the dissociation of CH2CO into CH2 and CO. Results of theoretical calculations for the energy and angular momentum resolved rate constants are presented. Using an added dynamical approximation, the product vibrational–rotational distributions are also calculated. The calculated rate constants are compared with the corresponding experimentally determined quantities where possible. Comparison is also made with phase space theory (PST). The RRKM-based calculations are in good agreement with both the experimentally determined rate constants of Zewail and co-workers and the experimentally determined photofragment excitation spectra of Moore and co-workers. The results on rates are in contrast to the corresponding results from PST calculations. The RRKM-based theory for the product vibrational–rotational distributions predicts a moderately greater probability for vibrational excitations than does PST (particularly for excess energies just above the threshold for excitation of a particular vibrational mode of the products). In other respects the RRKM-based predictions of the ro-vibrational product state distributions are quite similar to those of PST.

Chemical kinetics and mechanisms of complex systems: A perspective on recent theoretical advances

This Perspective presents a personal overview of the current status of the theory of chemical kinetics and mechanisms for complex processes. We attempt to assess the status of the field for reactions in the gas phase, at gas-solid interfaces, in liquid solutions, in enzymes, and for protein folding. Some unifying concepts such as potential energy surfaces, free energy, master equations, and reaction coordinates occur in more than one area. We hope this Perspective will be useful for highlighting recent advances and for identifying important areas for future research.

The anharmonic force field and equilibrium molecular structure of ketene

A comprehensive anharmonic vibrational analysis of isotopic ketenes has been performed on the basis of a complete ab initio quartic force field constructed by means of second‐order Mo/ller–Plesset perturbation theory (MP2) and the coupled‐cluster singles and doubles (CCSD) approach, augmented for structural optimizations by a contribution for connected triple excitations [CCSD(T)]. The atomic‐orbital basis sets of the study entailed C,O(10s6p/5s4p) and H(6s/4s) spaces multiply polarized in the valence region to give QZ(2d,2p) and QZ(2d1f,2p1d) sets. An iterative anharmonic vibrational refinement of a limited set of quadratic scaling parameters on 27 fundamentals of H2CCO, HDCCO, D2CCO, and H2C13CO generates a final quartic force field which reproduces the empirical νi data with an average absolute error of only 1.1 cm−1. This force field yields a complete and self‐consistent set of Coriolis (ζij), vibrational anharmonic (χij), vibration–rotation interaction (αi), and quartic and sextic centrifugal distort...

The 2014 KIDA network for interstellar chemistry

Chemical models used to study the chemical composition of the gas and the ices in the interstellar medium are based on a network of chemical reactions and associated rate coefficients. These reacti ...

Rate Constants for the Thermal Decomposition of Ethanol and Its Bimolecular Reactions with OH and D: Reflected Shock Tube and Theoretical Studies

The thermal decomposition of ethanol and its reactions with OH and D have been studied with both shock tube experiments and ab initio transition state theory-based master equation calculations. Dissociation rate constants for ethanol have been measured at high T in reflected shock waves using OH optical absorption and high-sensitivity H-atom ARAS detection. The three dissociation processes that are dominant at high T are C2H5OH--> C2H4+H2O (A) -->CH3+CH2OH (B) -->C2H5+OH (C).The rate coefficient for reaction C was measured directly with high sensitivity at 308 nm using a multipass optical White cell. Meanwhile, H-atom ARAS measurements yield the overall rate coefficient and that for the sum of reactions B and C , since H-atoms are instantaneously formed from the decompositions of CH(2)OH and C(2)H(5) into CH(2)O + H and C(2)H(4) + H, respectively. By difference, rate constants for reaction 1 could be obtained. One potential complication is the scavenging of OH by unreacted ethanol in the OH experiments, and therefore, rate constants for OH+C2H5OH-->products (D)were measured using tert-butyl hydroperoxide (tBH) as the thermal source for OH. The present experiments can be represented by the Arrhenius expression k=(2.5+/-0.43) x 10(-11) exp(-911+/-191 K/T) cm3 molecule(-1) s(-1) over the T range 857-1297 K. For completeness, we have also measured the rate coefficient for the reaction of D atoms with ethanol D+C2H5OH-->products (E) whose H analogue is another key reaction in the combustion of ethanol. Over the T range 1054-1359 K, the rate constants from the present experiments can be represented by the Arrhenius expression, k=(3.98+/-0.76) x10(-10) exp(-4494+/-235 K/T) cm3 molecule(-1) s(-1). The high-pressure rate coefficients for reactions B and C were studied with variable reaction coordinate transition state theory employing directly determined CASPT2/cc-pvdz interaction energies. Reactions A , D , and E were studied with conventional transition state theory employing QCISD(T)/CBS energies. For the saddle point in reaction A , additional high-level corrections are evaluated. The predicted reaction exo- and endothermicities are in good agreement with the current Active Thermochemical Tables values. The transition state theory predictions for the microcanonical rate coefficients in ethanol decomposition are incorporated in master equation calculations to yield predictions for the temperature and pressure dependences of reactions A - C . With modest adjustments (<1 kcal/mol) to a few key barrier heights, the present experimental and adjusted theoretical results yield a consistent description of both the decomposition (1-3) and abstraction kinetics (4 and 5). The present results are compared with earlier experimental and theoretical work.