Vibrational relaxation of nitrogen by various collision partners at 2500°K

The use of light emission from sulphur dioxide to measure vibrational relaxation times in shock-heated gases is described. Results for nitrogen relaxed by N2, SO2, O2, He, D2, Ar and Kr as collision partners at 2500° K are reported. All except SO2 and O2 fit both Millikan and White's correlation and Schwartz, Slawsky and Herzfeld's theory: energy transfer from internal modes of H2 and D2 and from the rotational mode of N2 do not contribute significantly to the rate of vibrational relaxation.