Abstract
Preliminary studies were carried out for the O+(4S 3/2) + methane reaction, which serves as a benchmark for developing the theory of polymer erosion by O+ under low Earth orbit conditions. Ab initio electronic structure calculations show that the interaction of O + with CH4 can lead to a large number of reaction products such as charge transfer, hydride abstraction, and H elimination. Based on the information obtained from these quantum chemistry calculations, a direct dynamics classical trajectory simulation was carried out at 5-eV relative translation energy and the chemical reaction channels predicted by the ab initio calculations are confirmed.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 436-438 |
Number of pages | 3 |
Journal | Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets |
Volume | 43 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2006 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Aerospace Engineering
- Space and Planetary Science