New light cast on key chemical reactions in interstellar space
July 11, 2007A detailed understanding of key chemical reactions that take place in interstellar space has been provided by groundbreaking research at two U.S. Department of Energy national laboratories and two European universities.
Argonne National Laboratory senior chemist Stephen Klippenstein – along with colleagues at Sandia National Laboratories; the Institute of Physics, University of Rennes, France; and the University of Cambridge, U.K. – has developed a detailed understanding of the dynamics of reactions between neutral radicals and neutral molecules, known as “neutral-neutral” reactions, at temperatures as low as 20 Kelvin, approximately the temperature of interstellar space.
In their work, Klippenstein and his collaborators determined why certain molecules reacted rapidly even at low temperatures by carefully comparing theory and experiment for a sample class of reactions (O3P + alkenes) that spans the range from non-reactive to highly reactive. The observed results from the experiment closely correlated with theoretical predictions, said Klippenstein.
“It was remarkable," he said, "just how well theory and experiment agreed throughout the whole spectrum from 20 Kelvin to room temperature. This means that we can rely on theory to predict which reactions will happen quickly.”
Establishing a working model for interstellar chemistry is especially important given the difficulty of performing large-scale experiments, according to Klippenstein.
“My collaborators have developed some great experimental techniques for measuring these reactions at low temperatures," he said. "But such experiments are still very time-consuming and are also hard to apply to many reactions. So schemes for predicting the reactivity for arbitrary reactions, either a priori or from extrapolation of measurements at higher temperatures, are of great utility to modelers of interstellar chemistry.”
Prior experimental studies with the CRESU (Reaction Kinetics in Uniform Supersonic Flow) technique demonstrated that a “surprising number” of neutral-neutral reactions remain rapid at very low temperatures. As a result, such reactions can play an important role in the chemistry of interstellar space, in contrast with the conventional wisdom that interstellar chemistry is essentially all ion-based.
The paper, entitled “Understanding Reactivity at Very Low Temperatures: The Reactions of Oxygen Atoms with Alkenes,” appears in the July 6 issue of Science.
Source: Argonne National Laboratory
-
Hot molecule explains cold chemistry
Jan 30, 2012 |
not rated yet |
1
-
Researchers discover novel chemical route to form organic molecules
Jan 13, 2012 |
5 / 5 (2) |
0
-
The methane habitable zone
Nov 11, 2011 |
4.9 / 5 (16) |
3
-
Astrobiologists discover 'sweet spots' for the formation of complex organic molecules in the galaxy
Nov 02, 2011 |
5 / 5 (6) |
1
-
SOFIA completes first flight of German science instrument
Apr 08, 2011 |
5 / 5 (2) |
0
-
Engineers build first sub-10-nm carbon nanotube transistor
Feb 01, 2012 |
4.9 / 5 (33) |
30
-
Something old, something new: Evolution and the structural divergence of duplicate genes
Jan 31, 2012 |
4.6 / 5 (7) |
1
-
The hidden nanoworld of ice crystals: Revealing the dynamic behavior of quasi-liquid layers
Jan 30, 2012 |
5 / 5 (4) |
1
-
Stock market network reveals investor clustering
Jan 27, 2012 |
3.9 / 5 (23) |
8
-
Of microchemistry and molecules: Electronic microfluidic device synthesizes biocompatible probes
Jan 26, 2012 |
5 / 5 (2) |
0
-
what is electricity???
4 hours ago
-
Can Plasma Be Solid
5 hours ago
-
What is delta Δ ?
6 hours ago
-
Need some help understanding Hertz–Knudsen formula
6 hours ago
-
Anatomy of Fat man: implosion-critical bomb
8 hours ago
-
what makes two sounds similar???
9 hours ago
- More from Physics Forums - General Physics
More news stories
Explained: Sigma
It's a question that arises with virtually every major new finding in science or medicine: What makes a result reliable enough to be taken seriously? The answer has to do with statistical significance -- but ...
Feb 09, 2012 |
5 / 5 (20) |
78
Quantum physicist explains $100K offer for proof scaled-up quantum computing is impossible
(PhysOrg.com) -- MIT researcher Scott Aaronson has certainly riled the physics community with his offer this past Friday, of $100,000 to anyone who can prove that scaled-up quantum computing is impossible. ...
Diamond light, brighter than the sun
Its the size of five football pitches and generates light 10 billion times brighter than the sun. As the Diamond Light Source celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, Penny Bailey visits one of the ...
Feb 07, 2012 |
4.1 / 5 (10) |
18
|
Physicists 'record' magnetic breakthrough
An international team of scientists has demonstrated a revolutionary new way of magnetic recording which will allow information to be processed hundreds of times faster than by current hard drive technology.
Feb 07, 2012 |
4.6 / 5 (43) |
15
|
Hints of the Higgs - papers are submitted
Back in December 2011, the ATLAS and CMS experiments at CERN presented some exciting results that provided tantalising hints of the Higgs boson.
Feb 08, 2012 |
4.3 / 5 (8) |
10
Scientists discover molecular secrets of 2,000-year-old Chinese herbal remedy
For roughly two thousand years, Chinese herbalists have treated Malaria using a root extract, commonly known as Chang Shan, from a type of hydrangea that grows in Tibet and Nepal. More recent studies suggest that halofuginone, ...
New method to examine batteries -- MRI from the inside
There is an ever-increasing need for advanced batteries for portable electronics, such as phones, cameras, and music players, but also to power electric vehicles and to facilitate the distribution and storage of energy derived ...
Google might launch Drive for cloud storage soon
(PhysOrg.com) -- Google's next big move, according to the Wall Street Journal, is a cloud storage service called Drive. Hardly first to the plate, Google is simply catching up to introducing its cloud reposi ...
A mitosis mystery solved: How chromosomes align perfectly in a dividing cell
Although the process of mitotic cell division has been studied intensely for more than 50 years, Whitehead Institute researchers have only now solved the mystery of how cells correctly align their chromosomes during symmetric ...
Lab study raises questions over nano-particle impact
Tests involving chickens have raised questions about the impact on health from engineered nano-particles, the ultra-fine grains commonly used in drugs and processed foods, scientists said on Sunday.
Starve a virus, feed a cure? Findings show how some cells protect themselves against HIV
A protein that protects some of our immune cells from the most common and virulent form of HIV works by starving the virus of the molecular building blocks that it needs to replicate, according to research published online ...