H-ATOM REACTION KINETICS IN SOLID PARAHYDROGEN FOLLOWED BY RAPID SCAN FTIR

Reactions of migrating H-atoms in parahydrogen (pH2) matrices with trapped molecular species provide a relatively unexplored yet well-established experimental method to study the kinetics and mechanisms of atom tunneling reactions in the 1.5 to 5 K temperature range. My group has now completed a series of experimental studies on the kinetics of reactions of H-atoms with HCOOH, CH3OH, and N2O which all show a pronounced inverse temperature dependence over this small temperature range.a Conversely, the analogous H-atom reaction with NO displays a more standard Arrhenius behavior. In this talk, I will present a brief summary of these results with the objective of developing a predictive understanding of the kinetics of these H-atom tunneling reactions. I will also emphasize the advantages of following the kinetics using rapid scan FTIR.