LASER-INDUCED FLUORESCENCE STUDIES OF THE REACTIONS OF NH(A1-DELTA) WITH NO AND HCN

The reactions of electronically excited imidogen NH(a1Δ) with NO and HCN have been studied at room temperature and low total pressures (20 mbar): NH(a) + NO → products (1); NH(a) + HCN → products (2). NH(a), produced by laser photolysis of HN3 at λL = 308 nm, was detected directly by laser-induced fluorescence (LIF). Measurements of the rate constants were performed under pseudo-first-order conditions, i.e., [R] ≫ [NH(a)], whereby the time resolution resulted from the delay between the photolysis and the probe lasers. The following rate constants were measured at T = 298 K: k1 = 1.7 × 1013 cm3/(mol s); k2 = 2.1 × 1013 cm3/(mol s). Direct detection of the primary products NH(X), OH(X), NH2(X), CH2(a∼1A1), and CN(X) was performed by LIF. The contribution of physical quenching of NH(a) to form NH(X) for reactants NO and HCN was found to be 40% and 4%, respectively. In reaction 1 OH and in reaction 2 CN were detected as chemical products. © 1990 American Chemical Society.