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1. Functionalized Hydroperoxide Formation from the Reaction of Methacrolein-Oxide, an Isoprene-Derived Criegee Intermediate, with Formic Acid: Experiment and Theory

   https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26103058  

   Vansco, Michael F. ; Zuraski, Kristen ; Winiberg, Frank A. ; Au, Kendrew ; Trongsiriwat, Nisalak ; Walsh, Patrick J. ; Osborn, David L. ; Percival, Carl J. ; Klippenstein, Stephen J. ; Taatjes, Craig A. ; et al ( May 2021 , Molecules)

   null (Ed.)

   Methacrolein oxide (MACR-oxide) is a four-carbon, resonance-stabilized Criegee intermediate produced from isoprene ozonolysis, yet its reactivity is not well understood. This study identifies the functionalized hydroperoxide species, 1-hydroperoxy-2-methylallyl formate (HPMAF), generated from the reaction of MACR-oxide with formic acid using multiplexed photoionization mass spectrometry (MPIMS, 298 K = 25 °C, 10 torr = 13.3 hPa). Electronic structure calculations indicate the reaction proceeds via an energetically favorable 1,4-addition mechanism. The formation of HPMAF is observed by the rapid appearance of a fragment ion at m/z 99, consistent with the proposed mechanism and characteristic loss of HO2 upon photoionization of functional hydroperoxides. The identification of HPMAF is confirmed by comparison of the appearance energy of the fragment ion with theoretical predictions of its photoionization threshold. The results are compared to analogous studies on the reaction of formic acid with methyl vinyl ketone oxide (MVK-oxide), the other four-carbon Criegee intermediate in isoprene ozonolysis. 

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2. Direct kinetic measurements and theoretical predictions of an isoprene-derived Criegee intermediate

   https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1916711117  

   Caravan, Rebecca L. ; Vansco, Michael F. ; Au, Kendrew ; Khan, M. Anwar H. ; Li, Yu-Lin ; Winiberg, Frank A. F. ; Zuraski, Kristen ; Lin, Yen-Hsiu ; Chao, Wen ; Trongsiriwat, Nisalak ; et al ( April 2020 , Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences)

   Isoprene has the highest emission into Earth’s atmosphere of any nonmethane hydrocarbon. Atmospheric processing of alkenes, including isoprene, via ozonolysis leads to the formation of zwitterionic reactive intermediates, known as Criegee intermediates (CIs). Direct studies have revealed that reactions involving simple CIs can significantly impact the tropospheric oxidizing capacity, enhance particulate formation, and degrade local air quality. Methyl vinyl ketone oxide (MVK-oxide) is a four-carbon, asymmetric, resonance-stabilized CI, produced with 21 to 23% yield from isoprene ozonolysis, yet its reactivity has not been directly studied. We present direct kinetic measurements of MVK-oxide reactions with key atmospheric species using absorption spectroscopy. Direct UV-Vis absorption spectra from two independent flow cell experiments overlap with the molecular beam UV-Vis-depletion spectra reported recently [M. F. Vansco, B. Marchetti, M. I. Lester,J. Chem. Phys.149, 44309 (2018)] but suggest different conformer distributions under jet-cooled and thermal conditions. Comparison of the experimental lifetime herein with theory indicates only thesyn-conformers are observed;anti-conformers are calculated to be removed much more rapidly via unimolecular decay. We observe experimentally and predict theoretically fast reaction ofsyn-MVK-oxide with SO₂and formic acid, similar to smaller alkyl-substituted CIs, and by contrast, slow removal in the presence of water. We determine products through complementary multiplexed photoionization mass spectrometry, observing SO₃and identifying organic hydroperoxide formation from reaction with SO₂and formic acid, respectively. The tropospheric implications of these reactions are evaluated using a global chemistry and transport model.

    

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3. Electronic Absorption Spectroscopy and Photochemistry of Criegee Intermediates

   https://doi.org/10.1111/php.13665  

   Karsili, Tolga N. V. ; Marchetti, Barbara ; Lester, Marsha I. ; Ashfold, Michael N. R. ( July 2022 , Photochemistry and Photobiology)

   Interest in Criegee intermediates (CIs), often termed carbonyl oxides, and their role in tropospheric chemistry has grown massively since the demonstration of laboratory‐based routes to their formation and characterization in the gas phase. This article reviews current knowledge regarding the electronic spectroscopy of atmospherically relevant CIs like CH₂OO, CH₃CHOO, (CH₃)₂COO and larger CIs like methyl vinyl ketone oxide and methacrolein oxide that are formed in the ozonolysis of isoprene, and of selected conjugated carbene‐derived CIs of interest in the synthetic chemistry community. Of the aforementioned atmospherically relevant CIs, all except CH₂OO and (CH₃)₂COO exist in different conformers which, under tropospheric conditions, can display strikingly different thermal loss ratesviaunimolecular and bimolecular processes. Calculated photolysis rates based on their absorption properties suggest that solar photolysis will rarely be a significant contributor to the total loss rate for any CI under tropospheric conditions. Nonetheless, there is ever‐growing interest in the absorption cross sections and primary photochemistry of CIs following excitation to the strongly absorbing¹ππ* state, and how this varies with CI, with conformer and with excitation wavelength. The later part of this review surveys the photochemical data reported to date, including a range of studies that demonstrate prompt photo‐induced fission of the terminal O–O bond, and speculates about possible alternate decay processes that could occur following non‐adiabatic coupling to, and dissociation from, highly internally excited levels of the electronic ground state of a CI.

    

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4. A plethora of isomerization processes and hydrogen scrambling in the fragmentation of the methanol dimer cation: a PEPICO study

   https://doi.org/10.1039/d1cp05155e  

   Wu, Xiangkun ; Zhou, Xiaoguo ; Bjelić, Saša ; Hemberger, Patrick ; Sztáray, Bálint ; Bodi, Andras ( January 2022 , Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics)

   The valence photoionization of light and deuterated methanol dimers was studied by imaging photoelectron photoion coincidence spectroscopy in the 10.00–10.35 eV photon energy range. Methanol clusters were generated in a rich methanol beam in nitrogen after expansion into vacuum. They generally photoionize dissociatively to protonated methanol cluster cations, (CH 3 OH) n H + . However, the stable dimer parent ion (CH 3 OH) 2 + is readily detected below the dissociation threshold to yield the dominant CH 3 OH 2 + fragment ion. In addition to protonated methanol, we could also detect the water- and methyl-loss fragment ions of the methanol dimer cation for the first time. These newly revealed fragmentation channels are slow and cannot compete with protonated methanol cation formation at higher internal energies. In fact, the water- and methyl-loss fragment ions appear together and disappear at a ca. 150 meV higher energy in the breakdown diagram. Experiments with selectively deuterated methanol samples showed H scrambling involving two hydroxyl and one methyl hydrogens prior to protonated methanol formation. These insights guided the potential energy surface exploration to rationalize the dissociative photoionization mechanism. The potential energy surface was further validated by a statistical model including isotope effects to fit the experiment for the light and the perdeuterated methanol dimers simultaneously. The (CH 3 OH) 2 + parent ion dissociates via five parallel channels at low internal energies. The loss of both CH 2 OH and CH 3 O neutral fragments leads to protonated methanol. However, the latter, direct dissociation channel is energetically forbidden at low energies. Instead, an isomerization transition state is followed by proton transfer from a methyl group, which leads to the CH 3 (H)OH + ⋯CH 2 OH ion, the precursor to the CH 2 OH-, H 2 O-, and CH 3 -loss fragments after further isomerization steps, in part by a roaming mechanism. Water loss yields the ethanol cation, and two paths are proposed to account for m/z 49 fragment ions after CH 3 loss. The roaming pathways are quickly outcompeted by hydrogen bond breaking to yield CH 3 OH 2 + , which explains the dominance of the protonated methanol fragment ion in the mass spectrum. 

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5. Sulfur Dioxide Modifies Aerosol Particle Formation and Growth by Ozonolysis of Monoterpenes and Isoprene

   https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JD030064  

   Stangl, Christopher M. ; Krasnomowitz, Justin M. ; Apsokardu, Michael J. ; Tiszenkel, Lee ; Ouyang, Qi ; Lee, Shanhu ; Johnston, Murray V. ( April 2019 , Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres)

   The effect of sulfur dioxide on particle formation and growth by ozonolysis of three monoterpenes (α‐pinene,β‐pinene, and limonene) and isoprene was investigated in the presence of monodisperse ammonium sulfate seed particles and an OH scavenger in a flow tube under dry conditions. Without sulfur dioxide, new particle formation was not observed, and seed particle growth was consistent with condensation of low‐volatility oxidation products produced from each organic precursor. With sulfur dioxide, new particle formation was observed from every precursor studied, consistent with sulfuric acid formation by reaction of sulfur dioxide with stabilized Criegee Intermediates. The presence of sulfur dioxide did not significantly affect seed particle growth rates fromα‐pinene and limonene ozonolysis, although chemical composition measurements revealed the presence of organosulfates in the particles following SO₂exposure. Contrarily, the growth of seeds byβ‐pinene and isoprene ozonolysis was considerably enhanced by sulfur dioxide, and chemical composition measurements revealed that the enhanced growth was not due to additional organic material, suggesting that inorganic sulfate was likely responsible. The results suggest that a previously unconsidered particle‐phase pathway to growth activated by sulfur dioxide may alter production of cloud condensation nuclei over regions with significant SO₂‐alkene interactions.

    

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