The Effect of Electric Fields on the Radiolysis of Acetylene, and the Mechanism of Cuprene Formation
Gaseous acetylene at pressures of about 200 Torr was irradiated with γ-rays at doserates between about 1011 and 1012 eV/cc s, with and without an electric field applied. The deposition of cuprene on the bottom of the reaction vessel was markedly affected by the field, but the rate of cuprene formation as measured by the pressure decrease was unchanged. Examination of the cuprene deposit with an electron microscope showed it to consist of rather uniform spheres averaging about 3000 Å in diameter, with each containing an estimated 2 × 108 molecules of acetylene. The mechanism of cuprene formation is discussed, and it is suggested that it does not proceed through a direct polymerization of acetylene, but involves a secondary polymerization of polyene intermediates, in the gas phase and after their condensation in liquid droplets.