Mass-Spectrometric Investigation of the Reaction of Hydrogen with Graphite at 1900°–2400°K

An integral furnace mass spectrometer was used to directly observe the products of the reaction of hydrogen with graphite between 1880° and 2430°K at pressures up to 0.5 torr and with 80-msec contact times. Ions observed to m / e 140 indicate formation of an extensive high-molecular-weight hydrocarbon system consisting mainly of unsaturated, acyclic, nonaromatic compounds. Many of these compounds were formed in steady-state concentrations much greater than expected for equilibrium. A reaction mechanism involving addition and insertion reactions is discussed.