Smog chamber/FTIR techniques were used to study the kinetics and mechanism of the reaction of Cl atoms
and OH radicals with fluorobenzene, C6H5F, in 700 Torr of N2 or air diluent at 296 K. Reaction of Cl atoms
with C6H5F proceeds via two pathways: H-atom abstraction to give HCl and the C6H4F radical and adduct
formation to give the C6H5F−Cl adduct. At 296 K the rate constant for the abstraction channel is k
5a(Cl +
C6H5F) = (1.1 ± 0.1) × 10-17 cm3 molecule-1 s-1. The C6H5F−Cl adduct undergoes rapid (k ∼ 108 s-1)
decomposition to reform C6H5F and Cl atoms and reaction with Cl atoms via a mechanism which, at least in
part, leads neither to production of C6H5Cl nor to reformation of C6H5F. As the steady-state Cl atom
concentration is increased, the fraction of the C6H5F−Cl adduct undergoing reaction with Cl atoms increases
causing an increase in the effective rate constant for the reaction of C6H5F with Cl atoms. The equilibrium
between Cl atoms, C6H5F, and the C6H5F−Cl adduct is established rapidly and has an equilibrium constant
estimated to be K
5b=[C6H5F−Cl]/[C6H5F][Cl] = (3.2 ± 2.4) × 10-18 cm3 molecule-1. An upper limit of k
9
< 6 × 10-17 cm3 molecule-1 s-1 was established for the reaction of the C6H5F−Cl adduct with O2. The
reaction of OH radicals with C6H5F was studied and a rate constant of k(OH + C6H5F) = (7.9 ± 2.2) ×
10-13 cm3 molecule-1 s-1 was determined. The results are discussed with respect to the available literature
concerning reaction of Cl atoms and OH radicals with aromatic compounds. As part of this work, rate constants
for reaction of OH radicals with 2-, 3-, and 4-fluorophenol of (6.3 ± 1.3) × 10-12, (2.3 ± 0.5) × 10-11, and
(2.5 ± 0.5) × 10-11 cm3 molecule-1 s-1 were determined.