Abstract:

The ozonolysis of alkenes in the atmosphere proceeds through the formation of a reactive zwitterion called the Criegee intermediate. A complete description of the reactivity of these Criegee intermediates is important for an understanding of their impacts on the oxidative capacity of the atmosphere. My talk will cover the reaction of the simplest Criegee intermediate, formaldehyde oxide, with aldehydes and pyruvic acid, as well as discuss recent work on the photochemical production of Criegee intermediates in laboratory settings. The work on aldehyde reactivity is useful as an extension of ongoing work seeking to relate the reactivity of Criegee intermediates + carbonyls to the electronic properties of the carbonyl substituents, while the pyruvic acid study elucidates the temperature-dependent differences in available reaction pathways. The talk will culminate in a description of the structure-activity relationships developed for the Criegee intermediate-carbonyl reaction as part of a larger project in this research group.