EVALUATION OF THE REACTION-RATE CONSTANTS FOR CHLORINATED ETHYLENE AND ETHANE DECOMPOSITION IN ATTACHMENT-DOMINATED ATMOSPHERIC-PRESSURE DRY-AIR PLASMAS

Pseudo-first-order reaction rate constants for the decomposition of ca rbon tetrachloride, trichloroethane, trichlorethylene, dichloroethane, dichloroethene, ethyl chloride and vinyl chloride were determined exp erimentally in an electron beam generated plasma reactor. The chlorina ted ethylenes and ethanes were decomposed in a dry-air based attachmen t-dominated plasma. The experimental results agree well a simple, stea dy-state calculation used to predict the active species concentrations in the plasma and the overall pseudo-first-order reaction rate consta nts. Dissociative electron attachment is the dominant mechanism of dec omposition of the chlorinated molecules, though oxygen radical reactio ns play a role as well. (C) 1997 Published by Elsevier Science B.V.