Synchrotron photoionization measurements of OH-initiated cyclohexene oxidation: Ring-preserving products in OH + cyclohexene and hydroxycyclohexyl + O 2 reactions

Earlier synchrotron photoionization mass spectrometry experiments suggested a prominent ring-opening channel in the OH-initiated oxidation of cyclohexene, based on comparison of product photoionization spectra with calculated spectra of possible isomers. The present work re-examines the OH + cyclohexene reaction, measuring the isomeric products of OH-initiated oxidation of partially and fully deuterated cyclohexene. In particular, the directly measured photoionization spectrum of 2-cyclohexen-1-ol differs substantially from the previously calculated Franck-Condon envelope, and the product spectrum can be fit with no contribution from ring-opening. Measurements of H 2O 2 photolysis in the presence of C 6D 10 establish that the addition-elimination product incorporates the hydrogen atom from the hydroxyl radical reactant and loses a hydrogen (a D atom in this case) from the ring. Investigation of OH + cyclohexene-4,4,5,5-d 4 confirms this result and allows mass discrimination of different abstraction pathways. Products of 2-hydroxycyclohexyl-d 10 reaction with O 2 are observed upon adding a large excess of O 2 to the OH + C 6D 10 system. © 2012 American Chemical Society.