Infrared Spectra and Chemical Abundance of Methyl Propionate in Icy Astrochemical Conditions

TL;DR

This study provides experimental and theoretical IR spectra of methyl propionate under astrochemical conditions, aiding future detection in the interstellar medium and suggesting its feasible synthesis in cold dust grains.

Contribution

It presents the first IR spectra of methyl propionate in astrochemical conditions and compares experimental data with theoretical calculations to facilitate its identification in space.

Findings

IR spectra of methyl propionate obtained and analyzed

Theoretical and experimental spectra show good agreement

Methyl propionate likely synthesized in the interstellar medium

Abstract

We carried out an experiment in order to obtain the InfraRed (IR) spectra of methyl propionate (CH3CH2COOCH3) in astrochemical conditions and present the IR spectra for future identification of this molecule in the InterStellar Medium (ISM). The experimental IR spectrum is compared with the theoretical spectrum and an attempt was made to assign the observed peak positions to their corresponding molecular vibrations in condensed phase. Moreover, our calculations suggest that methyl propionate must be synthesized efficiently within the complex chemical network of the ISM and therefore be present in cold dust grains, awaiting identification.