Mercury Photosensitized Reaction of Ethylene at High Temperature

Abstract

The mercury photosensitized reaction of ethylene at high temperature was investigated using gas chromatographic technique. Hydrogen, methane, acetylene, propane, propylene, butane, butene‐1, and butene‐2 as well as the hydrocarbon products heavier than C₄ were observed. Hydrogen and acetylene were formed by the intramolecular decomposition of excited ethylene. The dependence of hydrogen formation on ethylene pressure was in fair accordance with Cvetanović's relationship. The hydrocarbon products except acetylene were mainly produced by the thermal decomposition reactions of larger hydrocarbon radicals. The irradiation of mixtures of ethylene and nitric oxide showed that a part of butene‐1 was formed by the reaction of excited ethylene with ethylene. A reaction between excited ethylene and acetylene was also found to occur. In the cadmium photosensitized reaction of ethylene the same products were also observed. In this case a part of the hydrogen was presumably formed by the abstraction reactions of hydrogen atoms.