Bond Strengths of Ethylene and Acetylene

TLDR: Negative ion photoelectron spectroscopy and gas-phase proton transfer kinetics were employed to determine the CH bond dissociation energies of acetylene, ethylene, and vinyl radical.

Abstract: Negative ion photoelectron spectroscopy and gas-phase proton transfer kinetics were employed to determine the CH bond dissociation energies of acetylene, ethylene, and vinyl radical: Do(HCC-H) = 131.3 f 0.7 kcal mol-', Do(CH2CH-H) = 109.7 f 0.8 kcal mol-', and Do(CH2C-H) = 81.0 f 3.5 kcal mol-'. The strengths of each of the other CH and CC bonds in acetylene and ethylene and their fragments were derived. The energy required to isomerize acetylene to vinylidene was also determined: HCWH - H2C=C: AHbo = 47.4 f 4.0 kcal mol-'. As part of this study, proton transfer kinetics in a flowing afterglow/selected-ion flow tube apparatus were used to refine the acidities of ethylene, acetylene, and vinyl. The gas-phase acidity of acetylene was tied to the precisely known values for hydrogen fluoride, AGsdd298(HF) = 365.6 f 0.2 kcal mol-', and water, AG-(H20) = 383.9 f 0.3 kcal mor', yielding AG-(HCC-H) = 369.8 f 0.6 kcal mol-'. The gas-phase acidity equilibria of acetylene with isopropyl alcohol and terr-butyl alcohol were also measured. Combined with relative acidities from the literature, these measurements yielded improved acidities for the alcohols, AGad,298( (CH3)2CHO-H) = 370.1 f 0.6 kcal mol-', AGaa298((CH3)3CO-H) = 369.3 f 0.6 kcal mol-', hGadd,298(C2HSO-H) = 372.0 f 0.6 kcal mol-', and AGacid.298(CH30-H) = 375.1 f 0.6 kcal mol-'. The gas-phase acidity of ethylene was measured relative to ammonia, AGacid.298(NH3) = 396.5 f 0.4 kcal mol-', giving AGadJ98(C2H1) = 401.0 f 0.5 kcal mol-'. The gas-phase acidity of vinyl radical was bracketed, 375.1 f 0.6 kcal mol-' I AGaaB8(CH2C-H) I 380.4 f 0.3 kcal mol-'. The electron affinities of ethynyl, vinyl, and vinylidene radicals were determined by photoelectron spectroscopy: EA(HCC) = 2.969 f 0.010 eV, EA(CH2CH) = 0.667 f 0.024 eV, and EA(CH2C) = 0.490 f 0.006 eV.