RADIOLYSIS OF AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS OF ETHYLENE

The products of the radiolysis of deaerated aqueous solutions of ethylene at atmospheric pressure are butane, hexane, octane, decane, acetaldehyde, butyraldehyde, ethanol, butanol, and hydrogen perioxide. Product yields, especially those of the aldehydes and hydrogen peroxide, increase with increasing ethylene concentration and decrease with increasing pH and radiation dose. Addition of efficient electron scavengers increases the yields of oxidized products and decreases the yields of reduced products. The results are compatible with a mechanism in which OH radicals add to rather than abstract from ethylene. Computer-aided analysis of the kinetics of competing reactions indicates that the low yields of aldehydes are related to the ability of these compounds to act as internal scavengers of solvated electrons.