Communication: Equilibrium rate coefficients from atomistic simulations: The O(P-3) + NO((2)Pi) -> O-2(X-3 Sigma(-)(g)) + N(S-4) reaction at temperatures relevant to the hypersonic flight regime

The O(P-3) + NO((2)Pi) -> O-2(X-3 Sigma(-)(g)) + N(S-4) reaction is among the N- and O-involving reactions that dominate the energetics of the reactive air flow around spacecraft during hypersonic atmospheric re-entry. In this regime, the temperature in the bow shock typically ranges from 1000 to 20 000 K. The forward and reverse rate coefficients for this reaction derived directly from trajectory calculations over this range of temperature are reported in this letter. Results compare well with the established equilibrium constants for the same reaction from thermodynamic quantities derived from spectroscopy in the gas phase which paves the way for large-scale in silico investigations of equilibrium rates under extreme conditions. (c) 2015 AIP Publishing LLC.