An Aromatic Universe-A Physical Chemistry Perspective

This Perspective presents recent advances in our in knowledge of the fundamental elementary mechanisms involved in the low- and high-temperature molecular mass growth processes to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in combustion systems and in extraterrestrial environments (hydrocarbon-rich atmospheres of planets and their moons, cold molecular clouds, circumstellar envelopes). Molecular beam studies combined with electronic structure calculations extracted five key elementary mechanisms: Hydrogen Abstraction-Acetylene Addition, Hydrogen Abstraction-Vinylacetylene Addition, Phenyl Addition-DehydroCyclization, Radical-Radical Reactions, and Methylidyne Addition-Cyclization-Aromatization. These studies, summarized here, provide compelling evidence that key classes of aromatic molecules can be synthesized in extreme environments covering low temperatures in molecular clouds (10 K) and hydrocarbon-rich atmospheres of planets and their moons (35-150 K) to high-temperature environments like circumstellar envelopes of carbon-rich Asymptotic Giant Branch Stars stars and combustion systems at temperatures above 1400 K thus shedding light on the aromatic universe we live in.

Automated summary

This Perspective presents recent advances in understanding the fundamental elementary mechanisms involved in molecular mass growth processes to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, shedding light on the aromatic universe we live in.