Reactions between organic free radicals and unsaturated hydrocarbons are important first steps in molecular growth, which ultimately leads to aerosol formation, a key feature of Titan's atmosphere. Low temperature branching ratios of radical-neutral reactions are key inputs for photochemical models of planetary atmospheres.  However, there are currently very few experimental measurements of low temperature product branching ratios included in these models. At the Advanced Light Source at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, a new apparatus has been developed, which combines a Laval expansion to study low temperature chemical reactions using time resolved photoionization mass spectrometry. Resulting photoionization spectra are used to derive low temperature isomer resolved product branching ratios for a set of key reactions. The latest results on a set of alkenes reacting with the ethynyl will be presented and the implications for Titan's chemistry will be discussed.

Low temperature kinetics and isomer resolved product branching ratios: Key inputs for photochemical models of planetary atmospheres

246th National Meeting (2013)

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