PHOTOSENSITIZED REACTIONS OF CARBON TETRAFLUORIDE

Abstract

Hg (6³P₁) at room temperature and at 300 °C. and Hg (6¹P₁) at room temperature fail to react with carbon tetrafluoride at a measurable rate. Xe (³P₁) causes carbon tetrafluoride to decompose with a quantum efficiency of about unity to yield fluorine and an unidentified solid product. It is concluded that the energy necessary to break the first C–F bond m CF₄ is more than 154 and less than 194 kcal. per mole. Hydrogen atoms produced from Hg (6³P₁) at room temperature and at 300 °C. and from Hg (6¹P₁) at room temperature do not react with carbon tetrafluoride. It is concluded from this that the activation energy of the reaction CF₄ + H → CF₃ + HF is not less than 14 kcal. per mole.