Radiation-catalytic reduction of molecular nitrogen with application of the tungsten(IV) hydride complexes

A radiation-catalytic experiment of the fixation and reduction of molecular nitrogen has been carried out. The [WH 4 (dtpe) 2 ] complex was applied to fix molecular nitrogen in a γ-radiation field. Plots of the dependence of either the number of molecules of ammonia or hydrazine vs dose are presented. A mechanism for the radiation-catalytic fixation and reduction of molecular nitrogen using the [WH 4 (dtpe) 2 ] complex is suggested. The unusually high radiation yields of ammonia and hydrazine are explained as due to a cyclic process.