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Researchers
first began studying PANs when it became apparent that something in the
badly
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polluted
air around Los Angeles was damaging plants. Peroxyacetyl Nitrate, the simplest
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compound
of the PAN family, was determined to be the culprit. In the decades since its
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discovery
much has been learned about PANs, but some questions still remain. This summer
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research
project was devoted to learning more about PANs and how to more efficiently
detect
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them
in the atmosphere. Traditional
methods of analysis, such as Gas Chromatography with an
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Electron
Capture Detector, were compared with newer methods that depend on the
reaction of
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PANs
with Luminol to release a photon of light. We attempted to synthesize five
PANs (PAN,
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PPN,
PBN, M-PAN, and PBzN) from their peracid precursors. The syntheses of PAN, PPN,
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and
PBN were successful, and we believe the PBzN synthesis was successful as
well. Our
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synthesis
of M-PAN was not complete at the time of printing. The PANs were used both to
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explore
the basic properties of PANs and to calibrate and test the methods of
analysis.
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Particular
attention was given to the Luminol system, which is as accurate and precise
as the
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GC-ECD,
but performs its analysis much more quickly. In addition, UV/Visible and IR spectra
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were
taken in both the gas phase and while the PANs were suspended in tridecane,
a heavy lipid
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solvent,
and the vapor pressures were determined.
By gaining a better understanding of PANs
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now,
researchers will be able to develop improved methods to detect and
understand them in the
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future.
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