Isotopic fractionation of carbon, deuterium and nitrogen : a full
  chemical study
  Context. The increased sensitivity and high spectral resolution of millimeter
telescopes allow the detection of an increasing number of isotopically
substituted molecules in the interstellar medium. The 14N/ 15N ratio is
difficult to measure directly for carbon containing molecules. Aims. We want to
check the underlying hypothesis that the 13C/ 12C ratio of nitriles and
isonitriles is equal to the elemental value via a chemical time dependent gas
phase chemical model. Methods. We have built a chemical network containing D,
13C and 15N molecular species after a careful check of the possible
fractionation reactions at work in the gas phase. Results. Model results
obtained for 2 different physical conditions corresponding respectively to a
moderately dense cloud in an early evolutionary stage and a dense depleted
pre-stellar core tend to show that ammonia and its singly deuterated form are
somewhat enriched in 15N, in agreement with observations. The 14N/ 15N ratio in
N2H+ is found to be close to the elemental value, in contrast to previous
models which obtain a significant enrichment, as we found that the
fractionation reaction between 15N and N2H+ has a barrier in the entrance
channel. The large values of the N2H+/15NNH+ and N2H+/ N15NH+ ratios derived in
L1544 cannot be reproduced in our model. Finally we find that nitriles and
isonitriles are in fact significantly depleted in 13C, questioning previous
interpretations of observed C15N, HC15N and H15NC abundances from 13C
containing isotopologues.
