Mass Spectrometric Study of NF₂, NF₃, N₂F₂, and N₂F₄

Area of Science:

• * Inorganic Chemistry
• * Physical Chemistry
• * Mass Spectrometry

Background:

• * Nitrogen-fluorine (N-F) compounds are important in various chemical applications.
• * Understanding their fragmentation patterns and bond strengths is crucial for predicting reactivity and stability.
• * Previous data on N-F compounds, including isomers of N₂F₂, were limited or required further validation.

Purpose of the Study:

• * To determine appearance potentials for ions derived from NF₂, NF₃, N₂F₂, and N₂F₄.
• * To identify ionization-dissociation processes and calculate associated bond dissociation energies.
• * To directly measure the bond dissociation energy of the F₂N-NF₂ bond and compile existing thermochemical data for N-F compounds.

Main Methods:

• * Measurement of appearance potentials using mass spectrometry.
• * Calculation of bond dissociation energies from experimental data.
• * Compilation and review of existing thermochemical and mass spectrometric data for N-F compounds.

Main Results:

• * Appearance potentials were successfully measured for selected ions from NF₂, NF₃, N₂F₂, and N₂F₄.
• * Ionization-dissociation processes were identified, enabling the calculation of bond dissociation energies.
• * The direct measurement of the F₂N-NF₂ bond dissociation energy yielded a value of 5.14±0.38 kJ/mole (21.5±1.6 kcal/mole).

Conclusions:

• * The study provides critical thermochemical data for nitrogen-fluorine compounds.
• * The findings support the assignment of cis and trans structures for N₂F₂ isomers.
• * This research contributes to a better understanding of the stability and fragmentation of N-F compounds.