Experimental and Theoretical Study on Electron Interactions with Acetic Acid Molecules

The absolute total cross section for electron collisions with acetic acid has been measured using an electrostatic electron spectrometer and linear transmission method for collision energies ranging from 0.4 to 300 eV. Elastic electron scattering from acetic acid within a low-energy range has also been studied theoretically using the Schwinger multichannel and R-matrix methods, in the static-exchange and static-exchange plus polarization levels of approximation for energies up to 15 eV. The absolute total and the integral elastic cross sections display a π* shape resonance at around 1.7 eV and a broad structure spanned between 4 and 10 eV, which can be associated with a superposition of overlapping σ* resonances. We compared the obtained results with data available in the literature regarding the interaction of electrons with acetic acid. The results of electron collisions with acetic acid, methyl formate, and formic acid are also compared and discussed.