936 research outputs found
The chemistry of fluorine-bearing molecules in diffuse and dense interstellar gas clouds
We present a theoretical investigation of the chemistry of fluorine-bearing
molecules in diffuse and dense interstellar gas clouds. The chemistry of
interstellar fluorine is qualitatively different from that of any other
element, because - unlike the neutral atoms of any other element found in
diffuse or dense molecular clouds - atomic fluorine undergoes an exothermic
reaction with molecular hydrogen. Over a wide range of conditions attained
within interstellar gas clouds, the product of that reaction - hydrogen
fluoride - is predicted to be the dominant gas-phase reservoir of interstellar
fluorine nuclei. Our model predicts HF column densities ~ 1.E+13 cm-2 in dark
clouds and column densities as large as 1.E-11 cm-2 in diffuse interstellar gas
clouds with total visual extinctions as small as 0.1 mag. Such diffuse clouds
will be detectable by means of absorption line spectroscopy of the J = 1 - 0
transition at 243.2 micron using the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared
Astronomy (SOFIA) and the Herschel Space Observatory (HSO). The CF+ ion is
predicted to be the second most abundant fluorine-bearing molecule, with
typical column densities a factor ~ 100 below those of HF; with its lowest two
rotational transitions in the millimeter-wave spectral region, CF+ may be
detectable from ground-based observatories. HF absorption in quasar spectra is
a potential probe of molecular gas at high redshift, providing a possible
bridge between the UV/optical observations capable of probing H2 in low column
density systems and the radio/millimeter-wavelength observations that probe
intervening molecular clouds of high extinction and large molecular fraction;
at redshifts beyond ~ 0.3, HF is potentially detectable from ground-based
submillimeter observatories in several atmospheric transmission windows.Comment: 34 pages, including 11 figures (10 color), accepted for publication
in Ap
Hexavalent Chromium Dissociation from Overspray Particles into Fluid for Three Aircraft Primers
DOD and industry use chromate-containing primers extensively to inhibit corrosion on metal assets. Chromate contains Cr6+, a human carcinogen, but there is little epidemiological evidence of increased lung cancer among spray painters. Using bio-aerosol impingers, overspray particles from three primers (solvent-borne epoxy, water-borne epoxy, and solvent-borne polyurethane) were collected into water to test the hypothesis that the paint matrix inhibits Cr6+ release into water, under the premise that this simulates Cr6+ release from particles into lung fluid. Particles were allowed to reside in water for 1 or 24 hours, then separated from the water by centrifugation, and the water tested for Cr6+. The mean fractions of Cr6+ released into the water after 1 and 24 hours for each primer (95% confidence) were: 70 5% and 85 5% (solvent epoxy), 74 4% and 84 4% (water epoxy), and 94 3% and 95 2% (polyurethane). Solvent and water epoxy primer 24-hour Cr6+ release ranged from 100% dissociation to 33% and 48%, respectively. Correlations between Cr6+ distribution with particle size and % Cr6+ dissociated from each sample indicate that particles \u3c 5 mm release a larger fraction of Cr6+ during the first 24 hours vs. particles \u3e 5 micrometers
Molecular properties of (U)LIRGs: CO, HCN, HNC and HCO+
The observed molecular properties of a sample of FIR-luminous and OH
megamaser (OH-MM) galaxies have been investigated. The ratio of high and
low-density tracer lines is found to be determined by the progression of the
star formation in the system. The HCO+/HCN and HCO+/HNC line ratios are good
proxies for the density of the gas, and PDR and XDR sources can be
distinguished using the HNC/HCN line ratio. The properties of the OH-MM sources
in the sample can be explained by PDR chemistry in gas with densities higher
than 10^5.5 cm^-3, confirming the classical OH-MM model of IR pumped
amplification with (variable) low gains.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, to appear in: IAU Symposium 242 Astrophysical
Masers and their Environment
A Line Survey of Orion KL from 325 to 360 GHz
We present a high-sensitivity spectral line survey of the high-mass star-forming region Orion KL in the 325-360 GHz frequency band. The survey was conducted at the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory on Mauna Kea, Hawaii. The sensitivity achieved is typically 0.1-0.5 K and is limited mostly by the sideband separation method utilized. We find 717 resolvable features consisting of 1004 lines, among which 60 are unidentified. The identified lines are due to 34 species and various isotopomers. Most of the unidentified lines are weak, and many of them most likely due to isotopomers or vibrationally or torsionally excited states of known species with unknown line frequencies, but a few reach the 2-5 K level. No new species have been identified, but we were able to strengthen evidence for the identification of ethanol in Orion and found the first nitrogen sulfide line in this source. The molecule dominating the integrated line emission is SO_2, which emits twice the intensity of CO, followed by SO, which is only slightly stronger than CO. In contrast, the largest number of lines is emitted from heavy organic rotors like HCOOCH_3, CH_3CH_2CN, and CH_3OCH_3, but their contribution to the total flux is unimportant. CH_3OH is also very prominent, both in the number of lines and in integrated flux. An interesting detail of this survey is the first detection of vibrationally excited HCN in the v_2 = 2 state, 2000 K above ground. Clearly this is a glimpse into the very inner part of the Orion hot core
Laboratory Measurement of the Pure Rotational Transitions of the HCNH+ and its Isotopic Species
The pure rotational transitions of the protonated hydrogen cyanide ion,
HCNH+, and its isotopic species, HCND+ and DCND+, were measured in the 107 -
482 GHz region with a source modulated microwave spectrometer. The ions were
generated in the cell with a magnetically confined dc-glow discharge of HCN
and/or DCN. The rotational constant B0 and the centrifugal distortion constant
D0 for each ion were precisely determined by a least-squares fitting to the
observed spectral lines. The observed rotational transition frequencies by
laboratory spectroscopy and the predicted ones are accurate in about 30 to 40
kHz and are useful as rest frequencies for astronomical searches of HCNH+ and
HCND+.Comment: 14 pages in TeX, 1 figures in JPE
High-spatial-resolution CN and CS observation of two regions of massive star formation
Molecular line CN, CS and mm continuum observations of two intermediate- to
high-mass star-forming regions - IRAS20293+3952 and IRAS19410+2336 - obtained
with the Plateau de Bure Interferometer at high spatial resolution reveal
interesting characteristics of the gas and dust emission. In spite of the
expectation that the CN and CS morphology might closely follow the dense gas
traced by the dust continuum, both molecules avoid the most central cores.
Comparing the relative line strengths of various CN hyperfine components, this
appears not to be an opacity effect but to be due to chemical and physical
effects. The CN data also indicate enhanced emission toward the different
molecular outflows in the region. Regarding CS, avoiding the central cores can
be due to high optical depth, but the data also show that the CS emission is
nearly always associated with the outflows of the region. Therefore, neither CS
nor CN appear well suited for dense gas and disk studies in these two sources,
and we recommend the use of different molecules for future massive disk
studies. An analysis of the 1 and 3mm continuum fluxes toward IRAS20293+3952
reveals that the dust opacity index beta is lower than the canonical value of
2. Tentatively, we identify a decreasing gradient of beta from the edge of the
core to the core center. This could be due to increasing optical depth toward
the core center and/or grain growth within the densest cores and potential
central disks. We detect 3mm continuum emission toward the collimated outflow
emanating from IRAS20293+3952. The spectral index of alpha ~ 0.8 in this region
is consistent with standard models for collimated ionized winds.Comment: 5 pages, 2 tables, 9 figures, accepted for Ap
Circumbinary Molecular Rings Around Young Stars in Orion
We present high angular resolution 1.3 mm continuum, methyl cyanide molecular
line, and 7 mm continuum observations made with the Submillimeter Array and the
Very Large Array, toward the most highly obscured and southern part of the
massive star forming region OMC1S located behind the Orion Nebula. We find two
flattened and rotating molecular structures with sizes of a few hundred
astronomical units suggestive of circumbinary molecular rings produced by the
presence of two stars with very compact circumstellar disks with sizes and
separations of about 50 AU, associated with the young stellar objects 139-409
and 134-411. Furthermore, these two circumbinary rotating rings are related to
two compact and bright {\it hot molecular cores}. The dynamic mass of the
binary systems obtained from our data are 4 M for 139-409 and
0.5 M for 134-411. This result supports the idea that
intermediate-mass stars will form through {\it circumstellar disks} and
jets/outflows, as the low mass stars do. Furthermore, when intermediate-mass
stars are in multiple systems they seem to form a circumbinary ring similar to
those seen in young, multiple low-mass systems (e.g., GG Tau and UY Aur).Comment: Accepted by Astronomy and Astrophysic
Evolution of complex organic molecules in hot molecular cores: Synthetic spectra at (sub-)mm wavebands
Hot molecular cores (HMCs) are intermediate stages of high-mass star
formation and are also known for their rich emission line spectra at (sub-)mm
wavebands. The observed spectral feature of HMCs such as total number of
emission lines and associated line intensities are also found to vary with
evolutionary stages. We developed various 3D models for HMCs guided by the
evolutionary scenarios proposed by recent empirical and modeling studies. We
then investigated the spatio-temporal variation of temperature and molecular
abundances in HMCs by consistently coupling gas-grain chemical evolution with
radiative transfer calculations. We explored the effects of varying physical
conditions on molecular abundances including density distribution and
luminosity evolution of the central protostar(s). The time-dependent
temperature structure of the hot core models provides a realistic framework for
investigating the spatial variation of ice mantle evaporation as a function of
evolutionary timescales. With increasing protostellar luminosity, the water ice
evaporation font (100K) expands and the spatial distribution of gas phase
abundances of these COMs also spreads out. We simulated the synthetic spectra
for these models at different evolutionary timescales to compare with
observations. A qualitative comparison of the simulated and observed spectra
suggests that these self-consistent hot core models can reproduce the notable
trends in hot core spectral variation within the typical hot core timescales of
10 year. These models predict that the spatial distribution of various
emission line maps will also expand with evolutionary time. The model
predictions can be compared with high resolution observation that can probe
scales of a few thousand AU in high-mass star forming regions such as from
ALMA.[Abridged]Comment: accepted for publication in A&
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