Ion-molecule reactions with carbon chain molecules: reactions with diacetylene and the diacetylene cation

Reactions of hydrocarbon and carbon/nitrogen ions with diacetylene and of the diacetylene radical cation with various molecules have been examined with a view to molecular growth by ion–molecule reaction. Measurements were performed with a Selected-Ion Flow Tube (SIFT) apparatus at 296 ± 2 K of the rate constants and product distributions for the reactions of C+, CH3+, C2H2+, C3H+, CN+, C2N+, and C2N2+ with C4H2 and of C4H2+ with H2, CO, C2H2, C2N2, and C4H2. Condensation and association reactions which build up the carbon content of the ion were observed to compete with charge transfer. For the reactions of CN+ and C2N2+ with C4H2 this growth involved the addition of cyanide to the carbon chain. The kinetics of protonation of diacetylene were also investigated. It was possible to bracket the proton affinity of diacetylene between the known proton affinities of HCN and CH3OH with a value for PA(C4H2) = 177 ± 5 kcal mol−1, which results in a heat of formation for C4H3+ of 305 ± 5 kcal mol−1. Numerous secondary association reactions were observed to form adduct ions in helium buffer gas at total pressures of a few tenths of a Torr with rates near the collision rate. This was the case for C6H4+ (C4H2+•C2H2), C7H5+ (C3H3+•C4H2), C8H4+ (C4H2+•C4H2), C8H5+ (C4H3+•C4H2), C9H3+ (C5H+•C4H2), C9H4+ (C5H2+•C4H2), C9H5 (C5H3+•C4H2), C10H4+ (C6H2+•C4H2), C10H5+ (C6H3+•C4H2), C11H7+ (C3H3+•(C4H2)2), C12H6+ (C4H2+•(C4H2)2), C9H3N+ (HC5N+•C4H2), and C10H4N+ (C2N+•(C4H2)2) where the reactants are indicated in parentheses. The observed high rates of association imply the formation of chemical bonds in the adduct ions but the structures of these ions were not resolved experimentally. In most instances there seems little basis for preferring acyclic over cyclic adduct ions.