ABSOLUTE RATE CONSTANTS FOR HYDROCARBON AUTOXIDATION: IV. TETRALIN, CYCLOHEXENE, DIPHENYLMETHANE, ETHYLBENZENE, AND ALLYLBENZENE

Abstract

Absolute rate constants have been measured for the autoxidation of five hydrocarbons under a variety of conditions. The propagation (kp) and termination (kt) rate constants at 30 °C (in l mole−1 s−1) are: tetralin in chlorobenzene 6.3 and 3.8 × 106 respectively, cyclohexene in chlorobenzene 6.1 and 2.8 × 106, diphenylmethane 4.8 and 8.0 × 107, ethylbenzene 0.11 and 2.0 × 107, and allylbenzene 10 and 2.2 × 108. Measurements on tetralin, α-methylstyrene, and allylbenzene in different solvents indicate that the effect of solvents on oxidation rates is mainly connected with changes in the rate of termination rather than propagation. Experiments with α,α-d2-diphenylmethane gave isotope effects kH/kD ~5.1 for kp and ~1.4 for kt. The rate constant for hydrogen atom abstraction from 2,6-di-t-butyl-4-methylphenol by peroxy radicals decreases in the order expected if steric effects are important, i.e., primary peroxy > secondary peroxy > tertiary peroxy radical.The co-oxidation method of estimating chain termination constants is criticized on the grounds that it can only be used to distinguish the fairly large changes in kt commonly encountered between hydrocarbons giving tertiary peroxy radicals and those giving secondary or primary radicals.The effect of hydrocarbon structure on bimolecular chain termination rate constants is reviewed. There is a gradation in kt from ~2 × 108] mole−1 s−1 for primary peroxy radicals, through the range 8 × 107 to 1 × 106 for secondary radicals, to the range from 3 × 105 to 3 × 102 for tertiary peroxy radicals.