Gas Phase Ion Chemistry, Reactivity, and Mechanisms

该奖项由化学结构、动力学和机制项目资助，来自科罗拉多大学博尔德分校的Veronica Bierbaum教授将对两类重要的化学体系——亲核试剂和多环芳烃——的气相离子化学、反应性和机制进行表征。研究将采用流动的余辉选择离子流管，结合激光诱导的声波解吸和离子阱质谱仪进行。亲核试剂，在靠近亲核位点的原子上含有孤电子对，已知在溶液中表现出增强的反应性。这些气相研究将探讨微溶剂化的影响、溶剂化的程度以及溶剂、亲核试剂和底物的性质。多环芳烃及其阳离子和阴离子的反应将用多种试剂进行表征。这项工作将提供有关这些化合物的基本动力学和热力学数据，这些数据与燃烧过程、大气和星际化学以及人类健康有关。从快速的爆炸性反应到缓慢的人类衰老过程，化学过程的速度差别很大。这项工作将研究两类重要化合物的反应性与化学结构和能量的关系。将研究在化学净化、环境净化和生化过程中重要的高活性化学物质。大苯衍生物的反应性将被表征，因为它们与燃烧和人类健康的相关性。对控制化学反应速率的因素的全面了解，有助于控制和优化这些过程。这项工作将培训研究生和博士后，包括妇女和代表性不足的群体，在实验室研究的发展、执行和交流方面，并为他们在教育、研究和社会其他领域担任领导职务做好准备。研究结果将在科学期刊和数据库上广泛传播，并纳入若干教育推广方案。

Through this award, funded by the Chemical Structure, Dynamics and Mechanisms - A Program of the Division of Chemistry, Prof. Veronica Bierbaum from the University of Colorado, Boulder, will characterize the gas phase ion chemistry, reactivity, and mechanisms of two important classes of chemical systems, alpha-nucleophiles and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Studies will be carried out with a flowing afterglow-selected ion flow tube coupled with laser-induced acoustic desorption and with an ion trap mass spectrometer. Alpha-nucleophiles, which contain lone electron pairs on the atom adjacent to the nucleophilic site, are known to exhibit enhanced reactivity in solution. These gas phase studies will probe the effect of micro-solvation, the extent of solvation, and the nature of the solvent, nucleophile, and substrate. Reactions of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and their cations and anions will be characterized with a wide array of reagents. This work will provide fundamental kinetic and thermodynamic data on these compounds that are relevant to combustion processes, atmospheric and interstellar chemistry, as well as human health.Chemical processes vary dramatically in their rates, from rapid, explosive reactions to the slow process of human aging. This work will study and correlate reactivity with chemical structures and energies for two important classes of compounds. Highly reactive chemical species will be studied that are important in chemical decontamination, environmental cleanup, and biochemical processes. The reactivity of large derivatives of benzene will be characterized due to their relevance to combustion and human health. A complete understanding of the factors that govern the rates of chemical reactions allows control and optimization of these processes. This work will train graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, including women and underrepresented groups, in the development, execution, and communication of laboratory research, and prepare them for leadership positions in education, research, and other segments of society. The results will be widely disseminated by publication in scientific journals and databases, and integrated into several educational outreach programs.