Sodium Resonance Radiation and the Polymerization of Ethylene

Ethylene has been found to quench the resonance radiation of sodium between 130 and 250°C. No measurable polymerization of ethylene results as a consequence of quenching, in contrast to previous results with excited mercury and cadmium. A catalytic polymerization of ethylene at sodium surfaces occurs above 250°C with an activation energy of 20 kcal. The inefficiency of the energy of sodium resonance radiation in producing polymerization is ascribed to unfavorable localization of the energy received by ethylene in the quenching process.