TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE OF RATE CONSTANTS FOR REACTIONS O++O2-]O2++O AND O++N2-]NO++N

The dependency of the rate constant kτ for the reactions O+ + O2 → O2+ + O k1 (1)O+ + N2 → NO+ + N k2 (2) on the gas temperature T, the vibrational temperature Tv of the molecular reactant, and the relative flow velocity υs between the gases, is studied theoretically by means of a collision theory approach. The resulting expression for kτ contains the two unknown parameters A (activation energy) and P0 (scaling factor) which have to be determined empirically. k1(T) is found to have a minimum at about 650°K and a nearly linear increase for temperatures above 750°K. For reaction (2), the rate constant is presented as a function of T and A, since uncertainties in the experimental results do not allow a reliable determination of A. The increase rate of k20 with Tv,(N2), the vibrational temperature of N2, falls off strongly with increasing gas temperature. © 1969.