This proof‐of‐principle study explored the possibility to form nitrogen‐containing organic products via exposure of liquid toluene to a flow of molecular nitrogen, at room temperature and atmospheric pressure, activated by dielectric barrier discharges. N‐containing organic compounds indeed formed under these conditions, including benzonitrile, a high‐value chemical that is industrially synthesized from toluene under demanding conditions. Toluene‐derived higher hydrocarbons, as well as oxygen‐containing derivatives, were also detected, the latter due to efficient reactions of residual oxygen in the system. A mechanistic description of the observed chemistry is provided, together with guidelines for increasing the selectivity for C–N forming reactions and the development of this approach into a novel synthetic approach for high‐value organic N‐containing chemicals.

中文翻译：

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等离子活化的N2气体处理液态甲苯中的含氮有机产物

这项原理验证研究探索了在室温和大气压下，通过介电势垒放电将液态甲苯暴露于分子氮流中而形成含氮有机产物的可能性。确实在这些条件下形成了含氮有机化合物，包括苄腈，这是一种高价值的化学物质，在苛刻的条件下由甲苯工业合成。还检测到了甲苯衍生的高级烃以及含氧衍生物，这是由于系统中残留氧的有效反应所致。提供了对所观察到的化学反应的机械描述，