Nitrogen dioxide reactions with 46 atomic main-group and transition metal cations in the gas phase: room temperature kinetics and periodicities in reactivity.

Experimental results are reported for the gas-phase room-temperature kinetics of chemical reactions between nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)) and 46 atomic main-group and transition metal cations (M(+)). Measurements were taken with an inductively-coupled plasma/selected-ion flow tube (ICP/SIFT) tandem mass spectrometer in helium buffer gas at a pressure of 0.35 ± 0.01 Torr and at 295 ± 2 K. The atomic cations were produced at ca. 5500 K in an ICP source and allowed to decay radiatively and to thermalize to room temperature by collisions with Ar and He atoms prior to reaction with NO(2). Measured apparent bimolecular rate coefficients and primary reaction product distributions are reported for all 46 atomic metal cations and these provide an overview of trends across and down the periodic table. Three main types of reactions were observed: O-atom transfer to form either MO(+) or NO(+), electron transfer to form NO(2)(+), and addition to form MNO(2)(+). Bimolecular O-atom transfer was observed to predominate. Correlations are presented between reaction efficiency and the O-atom affinity of the metal cation and between the prevalence of NO(+) product formation and the electron recombination energy of the product metal oxide cation. Some second-order reactions are evident with metal cations that react inefficiently. Most interesting of these is the formation of the MNO(+) cation with Rh(+) and Pd(+). The higher-order chemistry with NO(2) is very diverse and includes the formation of numerous NO(2) ion clusters and a number of tri- and tetraoxide metal cations. Group 2 metal dioxide cations (CaO(2)(+), SrO(2)(+), BaO(2)(+)) exhibit a unique reaction with NO(2) to form MO(NO)(+) ions perhaps by NO transfer from NO(2) concurrent with O(2) formation by recombination of a NO(2) and an oxide oxygen.