Products of meteoric metal ion chemistry within planetary atmospheres. 1. Mg⁺ at Titan

We report results of quantum chemical calculations of Mg⁺/ligand bond dissociation energies involving ligands identified as major constituents of Titan's upper atmosphere. Trends identified in these results allow elucidation of the important bimolecular and termolecular reactions of Mg⁺, and of simple molecular ions containing Mg⁺, arising from meteoric infall into Titan's atmosphere. Our study highlights, and includes calculated rate coefficients for, crucial ligand-switching and ligand-stripping reactions which ensure that a dynamic equilibrium exists between atomic and molecular ions of Mg⁺. Neutralization of ionized meteoric Mg is expected to produce the radical MgNC in high yield. The highly polar MgNC radical should provide an excellent nucleation site for condensation of polar (e.g., HCN, CH₃CN, and HC₃N) and highly unsaturated (e.g., C₂H₂, C₄ H₂, and C₂N₂) neutrals at comparatively high altitude, leading to precipitation of Mg-doped tholin-like material. The implications for Titan's prebiotic chemical evolution, of the surface deposition of such material (which may feasibly contain magnesium porphyrins, or other bioactive Mg-containing complexes) remain to be assessed.