Decomposition characteristics of toluene by a corona radical shower system

Zu-liang Wu1, Xiang Gao, Zhong-yang Luo

  • 1Clean Energy and Environment Engineering Key Lab of Ministry of Education, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China. wuzuliang@zju.edu.cn

Related Concept Videos

Mass Spectrometry: Aromatic Compound Fragmentation01:23

Mass Spectrometry: Aromatic Compound Fragmentation

Upon ionization, aromatic compounds generate a molecular ion that is observed as a prominent peak in their mass spectra. For example, the molecular ion peak for benzene appears at a mass-to-charge ratio of 78, while toluene is observed at a mass-to-charge ratio of 92. The molecular ion benzene is highly stable and does not readily undergo further fragmentation due to the significant amount of energy required to disrupt the aromatic stability of the benzene ring. In contrast, the molecular ion...
Radical Formation: Elimination00:51

Radical Formation: Elimination

Another method of radical formation is the elimination process. It is the opposite of the addition route and is driven by the instability of the radical. For example, as depicted in Figure 1, dibenzoyl peroxide yields a pair of unstable radicals upon homolysis. Given its instability, this radical spontaneously undergoes elimination via a C–C bond cleavage to form a relatively more stable phenyl radical. The mechanism involves cleavage of the bond between the α and β positions with respect to...
Hydrolysis of Chlorobenzene to Phenol: Dow Process01:10

Hydrolysis of Chlorobenzene to Phenol: Dow Process

Simple aryl halides do not react with nucleophiles under normal conditions. However, the reaction can proceed under drastic conditions involving high temperatures and high pressure to give the substituted products. For example, chlorobenzene is converted to phenol using aqueous sodium hydroxide at 350 °C under high pressure by the Dow process. The reaction follows an elimination-addition mechanism involving a benzyne intermediate. Here, the chloride ion is eliminated to generate the benzyne...
Radical Substitution: Hydrogenolysis of Alkyl Halides with Tributyltin Hydride01:26

Radical Substitution: Hydrogenolysis of Alkyl Halides with Tributyltin Hydride

Radical substitution reactions can be used to remove functional groups from molecules. The hydrogenolysis of alkyl halides is one such reaction, where the weak Sn–H bond in tributyltin hydride reacts with alkyl halides to form alkanes. Here, the reagent Bu3SnH yields tributyltin halide as a byproduct.
The bonds formed in this reaction are stronger than the bonds broken, making it energetically favorable. The reaction follows a radical chain mechanism similar to radical halogenation reactions,...
Radical Halogenation: Thermodynamics01:34

Radical Halogenation: Thermodynamics

The thermodynamic favorability of a reaction is determined by the change in Gibbs free energy (ΔG). ΔG has two components- enthalpy (ΔH) and entropy (ΔS). The entropy component is negligible for alkane halogenation because the number of reactants and product molecules are equal. In this case, the ΔG is governed only by the enthalpy component. The most crucial factor that determines ΔH is the strength of the bonds. ΔH can be determined by comparing the energy between bonds broken and bonds...
Radical Formation: Homolysis00:54

Radical Formation: Homolysis

A bond is formed between two atoms by sharing two electrons. When this bond is broken by supplying sufficient energy, either two electrons can be taken up by one atom forming ions by the cleavage called heterolysis, or the two electrons are shared by two atoms, with one each creating radicals by the cleavage called homolysis.