VUV Photoionization Study of the Allyl Radical from Premixed Gasoline/Oxygen Flame

The allyl radical has been observed in a low-pressure premixed gasoline/oxygen/argon flame by using tunable vacuum ultraviolet photoionization mass spectrometry. The ionization potential of the allyl radical is derived to be (8.13 + 0.02) eV from photoionization efficiency curve. In addition, a high level ab initio Gaussian-3(G3) method was used to calculate the energies of the radical and its cation. The calculated adiabatic ionization potential is 8.18 eV, which is in excellent agreement with the experimental value. The result is helpful for identifying the allyl radical formed from other flames and for understanding the mechanism of soot formation.