Transients observed in the low temperature photolysis of alkyl radicals and divalent sulfur substrates

The 253.7 nm photolysis of the isometric butyl radicals is described. These radicals are produced by electron capture during the γ-radiolysis of the corresponding butyl chlorides diluted in a rigid glass of 3-methylpentane-d14 at 77K. Thus t-butyl gives an equilibrium mixture of i-butyl and methyl radicals. Solvent radicals, M, are also produced and these obscure the former species in 3-MP-h14. Likewise sec-butyl radicals give rise to the ethyl, n-butyl, methyl and small amounts of the i-butyl radicals. Solvent radicals also rearrange and degrade in the photolytic beam, and the mechanism by which these processes occur is discussed. The procedure has also been used to study the formation and photolability of the alkyl thinyl and perthyl radicals occuring in the photolysis of RSH, RSR and RSSR. The thinyl radical is found to be unstable and gives the alkyl radical and atomic sulfur while the perthiyl radical is stable to radiation > 240 nm. (author)