Hexachloroethane photolysis

Hexachloroethane is quite stable in air. It is not expected to react with hydroxyl radicals or ozone in the atmosphere or to photodegrade in the troposphere (Callahan et al. 1979 Howard 1989). Degradation by photolysis may occur in the stratosphere. 

Photolysis of hexachloroethane in water has been reported, but degradation to carbon dioxide occurred at a temperature of 90-95 C (Knoevenagel and Himmelreich 1976). The relevance of these results to ambient conditions are uncertain. 

The photolysis of hexachloroacetone in the vapour phase has been studied by Hautecloque and in the liquid by Haszeldine and Nyman . The volatile products of the gas phase reaction were carbon tetrachloride, tetrachloroethylene, hexachloroethane and carbon monoxide, and the quantum yield for CO formation was 0.5 at 275 °C and 2 3130 A. These results suggest that primary processes of both Type 1 and Type 2 are occurring and that carbon monoxide is not readily formed from the trichloroacetyl radical... 

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