60Co γ-RADIOLYSIS OF HYDROGEN HALIDES AT 77 °K

Yields of hydrogen formed in the 60Co γ-radiolyses of pure polycrystalline samples of HBr and HCl at 77 °K decrease with increasing dose in the range 0 to 1 × 1018 eV per g. The true initial yields are G(H2)solidHClat77°K = 6.3 ± 0.2 and G(H2)solidHBrat77°K = 12.3 ± 0.3. Within experimental error these are the same as the respective liquid-phase yields at −79 °C. For doses in excess of 2 × 1018 eV per g the dose dependence is no longer significant and the yields tend toward plateau values of 3.2 ± 0.1 and 10.3 ± 0.1 for HCl and HBr respectively. The dose dependence of the hydrogen yields is attributed to the scavenging of a reactive intermediate by the halogen atoms and molecules which accumulate in the solid matrix as the dose increases.In independent experiments with an apparatus of the Klein–Scheer type it was shown that hydrogen atoms react readily with films of HBr at 77 °K. There is, however, no evidence of a significant reaction with HCl at this temperature. The difference in behavior of the two hydrogen halides may be explained by their different activation energies for reaction with hydrogen atoms. The results of the γ-radiolyses are discussed in the light of these experiments and it is suggested that the dose dependence may be a result of the scavenging of an ionic intermediate rather than a thermal hydrogen atom.