Does the HO2 radical react with ketones?

The possible reactions of HO2 with Five ketones were studied using a flow t ube reactor equipped with a laser magnetic resonance detector. We did not o bserve reactive loss of HO2 in any of the five reactions. We place upper li mits of <8 x 10(-16), <7 x 10(-16), <5 x 10(-16), <4 x 10(-16), and <9 x 10 (-16) (in units of cm(3) molecule(-1) S-1) at 298 K for the reactions of HO 2 with CH3COCH3, CH3COC2H5, CH3COC3H7, C2H5COC2H5, and CH3COC4H9, respectiv ely, to give products other than an adduct. We conclude that their reaction s with HO2 are unlikely to be important loss processes for ketones in the a tmosphere. (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons. Inc.