A Fourier-transform ion-cyclotron-resonance study of the reactions of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon cations with molecules of interstellar interest

The reactivity of naphthalene and pyrene radical cations and their derivati ves (C10Hn+, n=6,7,8,9), C16Hn (n=9,10,11)has been studied with molecules o f interstellar interest in an ion cyclotron resonance apparatus. The radica l cations C10H8+ and C16H10+ are unreactive with N-2,CO,H2O and NH3. Adduct formation is the only channel for almost all reactions of C10H7+ with thes e molecules. The implications of these results for the stability of polycyc lic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) cations in the interstellar medium are brief ly discussed. Exploratory studies of the ion chemistry of a larger PAH, cor onene, have also been done. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reser ved.