Kinetics of Dissociative Recombination of Free Electrons with Hydronium Ions in Premixed Flames

Abstract

The rate coefficient for the gas phase recombination of H3O+ ions and free electrons in H3O++ e–→ neutral products has been measured in atmospheric pressure flames of H2+ O2+ N2 over the temperature range 2025–2445 K. Concentrations of ions were arrived at by sampling each flame into a mass spectrometer. The recombination coefficient was not found to vary significantly with temperature, being 4.1 ± 1.0 × 10–7 ion–1 cm3 s–1 over this temperature range. This corresponds to a cross-section (πσ2) for the process of about 1.5 × 10–18 m2.