Shock Tube Study of the Thermal Decomposition of Hydrogen Cyanide,

Abstract

The decomposition rate of hydrogen cyanide, HCN + M yields H + CN + M (M = Ar) has been determined in the temperature range 3570 - 5036 K using a shock tube technique. HCN - Ar mixtures (3 - 142 ppmv HCN) were heated by incident shock waves at post-shock pressures of 0.17 - 0.29 bar, and CN emission from the B2 sigma + yield X2 sigma + system near 388 nm was used to monitor the time-varying CN concentration. Interferences from secondary reactions, including: CN + HCN yields C2N2 + H H + HCN yields H2 + CN were minimized by using low initial HCN mole fractions. An important feature of the present experiments is that the emission records extend to long enough times for the HCN to be converted completely to CN, thereby making the emission intensity traces self-calibrating.

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jul 01, 1981
Accession Number
ADP000286

Entities

People

  • Attila Szekely
  • Craig T. Bowman
  • Ronald Kenneth Hanson

Organizations

  • Stanford University

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Cyanides
  • Decomposition
  • Emission
  • Hydrogen
  • Hydrogen Cyanide
  • Intensity
  • Shock
  • Shock Tubes
  • Shock Waves
  • Tubes
  • Waves

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Molecular Photonics/Laser Physics