CHEMILUMINESCENT SPECTRA FROM REACTIONS OF ALKALINE EARTHS WITH CHLORIDE DIOXIDE

Abstract

Chemiluminescence spectra have been observed from the reactions of alkaline earths with $ClO_{2}$ under single collision conditions. The emission is from the metal oxides CaO, SrO, and BaO, and also from the chlorides MgCl, CaCl, SrCl, and BaCl, Identification of the highest occupied emitting level allows lower limits to be placed on the bond strengths of MgCl 3.3 $\pm$ 0.1 ev CaO 4.7 $\pm$ 0.1 ev SrO 4.6 $\pm$ 0.1 ev BaO 5.6 $\pm$ 0.1 ev For the observed oxides the emission has been identified primarily as the transition $A^{\prime}{^{1}\Pi}$ $\rightarrow$ $X^{1}\Sigma$. The measured cross sections for these reactions and the high yields of excited state products will be discussed in terms of an electron jump mechanism.