Trichloroacetyl chloride, CCl 3 COCl, as an alternative Cl atom precursor for laboratory use and determination of Cl atom rate coefficients for n-CH 2 [double bond, length as m-dash]CH(CH 2 ) x CN (x = 3-4).

An investigation of CCl3COCl was conducted with the purpose of using the compound as an alternative Cl atom precursor in laboratory settings. CCl3COCl can be used with or without O2 as a source of Cl atoms and photolysis studies in air and N2 diluent displayed COCl2 and CO as being the major photolysis products. Relative rate studies were performed to determine the Cl atom rate coefficients for reaction with CH3Cl and C2H2 and the results were in agreement with literature values. Cl atom rate coefficients for reaction with n-CH2[double bond, length as m-dash]CH(CH2)3CN and n-CH2[double bond, length as m-dash]CH(CH2)4CN were determined as (2.95 ± 0.58) × 10-10 and (3.73 ± 0.60) × 10-10 cm3 molecule-1 s-1, respectively. CCl3COCl requires UV-C irradiation, so not all molecules are feasible for use in e.g. relative rate studies. Furthermore, it is recommended to perform experiments with O2 present, as this minimizes IR feature disturbance from product formation.