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Abstract
Some facts are first presented for anion formation in three types of molecular liquids, classified according to molecular shape into (a) sphere-like, (b) flat, 2-dimensional-like, and (c) rod-like. These are then confronted with recent theoretical predictions about bound states in self-consistent potentials for neutral systems. It is concluded that the gross correlations predicted are in accord with the data: one-and two-dimensional molecules almost always lead to bound states (anions), while for sphere-like molecules the attractive potential must exceed a certain strength for bound states to form. It is recognized that for other than gross correlations, the nature of the bonding will have to be treated in detail. However, in cases (a) and (b) it is suggested that electron affinity should correlate grossly with the total number of valence electrons in the molecule. Finally, the reason why the electron affinity appears higher in the liquid than in gaseous state is attributed partly to hindered rotation, in addition to polarization effects.