Studies on the photooxidation mechanism of polymers. II. The role of quinones as sensitizers in the photooxidative degradation of polystyrene

During the quinone-sensitized photooxidative degradation of polystyrene film and its solution in benzene, an initial rapid decrease of average molecular weight has been observed by GPC and viscosity measurements. The reaction rates are strongly increased by quinones such as p-quinone, duroquinone, anthraquinone, and chloranil. It has been suggested that this photosensitized degradation of polystyrene occurs by a singlet oxygen reaction which might be related to an energy transfer mechanism from excited triplet states of quinones to molecular oxygen. The photooxidative degradation of polystyrene in solution can be diminished by addition of typical singlet oxygen quenchers such as 1,3-cyclohexadiene or β-carotene.     

Singlet oxygen and photooxidation of polymers

The rates of accumulation of oxygen-containing species in photooxidation have been determined for a series of polymers such as polystyrene, polyisoprene, and polybutadiene in a wide range of singlet oxygen stationary concentrations in the polymers. An increase in singlet oxygen (¹O₂) concentration was achieved by introducing a dye which is a ¹O₂ donor into a polymer and by irradiating a sample with an additional source of light absorbed by the dye only. To decrease ¹O₂ concentration, 1,2,5-trimethyl-4-hydroxyphenylpiperidine, which is a quencher of ¹O₂, was introduced into a sample. The ¹O₂ stationary concentration in an oxidized polymer was measured via singlet oxygen oxidation of 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-oxypiperidine which leads to the formation of the corresponding nitroxyl radical. The photooxidation rate has been found to vary only slightly with ¹O₂ concentration, even when the concentration changes 10–25-fold. Thus, ¹O₂ does not participate appreciably in the process of polymer photooxidation. It may be due to the lowering of ¹O₂ reactivity toward unsaturated groups in the polymer matrix as compared with that in solution.     

Studies on the photooxidation mechanism of polymers. V. Oxidation of polybutadienes by singlet oxygen from microwave discharge and in dye-photosensitized reactions

The singlet oxygen oxidation of cis- and trans- 1,4-polybutadienes was studied by using singlet oxygen generated in a microwave generator and in dye-photosensitized reactions of these polymers in the solid state and in solution. It was shown that the reactions of singlet oxygen result in formation of hydroperoxide groups, whereas ultraviolet oxidation by molecular oxygen in addition leads to formation of carbonyl groups. During dye-photosensitized oxidation of polydienes in benzene solution, a very rapid decrease in the molecular weight was observed.     

The eosin-sensitized photooxidation of substituted phenylalanines and tyrosines.

Abstract— The eosin-sensitized photooxidation of tyrosine and a number of compounds related to tyrosine (substituted phenylalanines) was studied by steady-state kinetic and flash photolysis techniques. In particular, the role of the phenolic group and the amino and carboxyl groups of the alanyl side chain in the photooxidation mechanism was investigated in detail. Several relationships between substrate structure and susceptibility to photooxidation as well as effects of substrate structure on photooxidation mechanisms were found. For example, phenylalanine is not photooxidizable, hut substitution of electron-donating (activating) groups such as-OH (as in tyrosine) or-NH₂ (as in p-aminophenylalanine) results in rapidly photooxidized derivatives. However, substituting deactivating groups such as—C1 (as in p-chlorophenylalanine) or weakly activating groups such as - OCH₃ (as in 4-methoxyphenylalanine) result in non-photooxidiz-able derivatives. Substitution of additional activating groups to the ring of hydroxy-substituted phenylalanines results in increased rates of photooxidation, whereas additional deactivating groups result in decreased photooxidation rates. The rate-determining step in the photooxidation mechanism is shown to be dependent on the presence and position of an electron-donating substituent on the benzenoid ring. Only minor involvement of the side chain amino and carboxyl groups was found. Both singlet oxygen and hydrogen abstraction mechanisms are involved in the eosin-sensitized photooxidation of hydroxy-substituted phenylalanines (e.g. tyrosine). The hydrogen abstraction mechanism probably predominates at both pH 8 and 11.     

Stereoselective photooxidation of enecarbamates: reactivity of ozone vs singlet oxygen

[reaction: see text]. Oxazolidinone-functionalized enecarbamates show contrasting behavior upon oxidation by singlet oxygen and by ozone. The observed stereoselectivity difference indicates that the oxidation with ozone is subject to classic steric effects, whereas the very high selectivity in the photooxidation with singlet oxygen is derived from vibrational deactivation.     

Dye-sensitized photooxidation of phenothiazine : An ESR study

The dye-sensitized or direct-light induced photooxidation of phenothiazine yielded phenothiazine nitroxide (1) and phenothiazanyl (2) radical depending on the reaction conditions. A singlet oxygen mechanism is suggested.     

Direct photooxidation and xanthene-sensitized oxidation of naphthols: quantum yields and mechanism

The photoinduced oxidation of 1-naphthol to 1,4-naphthoquinone and of 5-hydroxy-1-naphthol to 5-hydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone was studied by steady-state and time-resolved techniques. The direct photooxidation of naphthols in methanol or water takes place by reaction of the naphoxyl radical ((?)ONaph) with the superoxide ion radical (O(2)(?-)), the latter of which results from the reaction of the solvated electron with oxygen after photoionization. The sensitized oxidation takes place by energy transfer from the xanthene triplet state to oxygen. From the two oxygen atoms, which are consumed, one is incorporated into the naphthol molecule giving naphthoquinone and the second gives rise to water. The effects of eosin, erythrosin, and rose bengal in aqueous solution, pH, and the oxygen and naphthol concentrations were studied. The quantum yield of the photosensitized transformation was determined, which increases with the naphthol concentration and is largest at pH > 10. The quantum yield of oxygen uptake is similar. The pathway involving singlet molecular oxygen is suggested to operate for the three sensitizers. The alternative pathway via electron transfer from the naphthol to the xanthene triplet state and subsequent reaction of (?)ONaph with O(2)(?-), the latter of which is formed by scavenging of the xanthene radical anion by oxygen, does also contribute.     

Sensitized Photooxidation of Ortho-Prenyl Phenol: Biomimetic Dihydrobenzofuran Synthesis and Total 1O2 Quenching†

The sensitized photooxidation of ortho-prenyl phenol is described with evidence that solvent aproticity favors the formation of a dihydrobenzofuran [2-(prop-1-en-2-yl)-2,3-dihydrobenzofuran], a moiety commonly found in natural products. Benzene solvent increased the total quenching rate constant (k_T) of singlet oxygen with prenyl phenol by ~10-fold compared to methanol. A mechanism is proposed with preferential addition of singlet oxygen to prenyl site due to hydrogen bonding with the phenol OH group, which causes a divergence away from the singlet oxygen ‘ene’ reaction toward the dihydrobenzofuran as the major product. The reaction is a mixed photooxidized system since an epoxide arises by a type I sensitized photooxidation.     

Effect of photooxidation of polystyrene on its dielectric properties. II. Use of dielectric loss measurements to study photooxidation

Dielectric loss measurements have been applied to study the short-wave (λ = 254 nm) and long-wave (λ > 300 nm) photooxidation of polystyrene which had been prepared using both free radical and anionic initiator. The high-frequency loss peak, attributable to carbonyl products of oxidation is a sensitive monitor of the rate of oxidation, the sensitivity being greater than that of manometric measurements. The data are specific to carbonyl compounds and the technique is particularly suitable for studying the surfaces, on which most of the above photooxidation occurs with polystyrene. Effects of radiation intensity and oxygen pressure were also studied. The measurements have permitted a more detailed study of the long-wave photooxidation process than has previously been undertaken, and the results emphasize differential reactivities of radically and anionically prepared polymers. Results are interpreted in terms of initiation by both impurities and charge-transfer complexes.     

Model for the photooxidation of parylenes

Parylenes belong to a family of polymers that have been investigated for use in electronic and medical applications. The photooxidation of these materials is of interest both to prevent degradation and to induce targeted chemical changes. This article describes a transport and reaction model for the photooxidation of parylenes. This model is based on existing polymer photooxidation mechanisms that have been adapted to this system. The model has been compared with existing parylene photooxidation data for this system and shows qualitative agreement with surface oxidation profiles and oxidation depth profiles. On the basis of the results of the model comparison, it has been determined that the key parameters that appear to affect the photooxidation of parylenes are the diffusion coefficient of oxygen in these films and the concentration of oxygen initially present in these films. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 2666–2677, 2004     

Chain and photochain mechanisms of photooxidation of polymers

The mechanisms of photooxidation of the popular commercial polymers polystyrene (PS), polyethylene (PE), and an ethylene-carbon monoxide copolymer (polyketone, PK) differing in the polymer chain structure and the nature and concentration of chromophore groups are considered. In the case of the formation of photosensitive intermediates in polystyrene, taken as an example, the photochain oxidation mechanism was revealed and thoroughly studied, according to which the polymer “burns” into complete oxidation products (CO₂, H₂O) with a degree of conversion of ≥50% and a kinetic-chain length of l = 10³–10⁴ units. The hydroperoxide mechanism plays a minor role in the photooxidation of PS, it is a short-chain process (as in the case of thermal oxidation, l ∼ 10) and does not exceed 1.5% of the total amount of absorbed oxygen. Carbonyl groups, as weak photoinitiators, induce in PE and PK the conventional radical chain mechanism of photooxidation with degenerate branching of kinetic chains on hydroperoxide groups and other oxidations products.     

Inhibition of the mitochondrial F1-ATPase by rose bengal mediated photooxidation. Interaction of the Fe2+ chelate of bathophenanthroline with the sensitizer

Rose Bengal mediated photooxidation of mitochondrial F1-ATPase and its beta-subunit resulted in inactivation and loss of about 50 and 60% of their histidine residues, respectively. The beta-subunit was not cleaved upon photooxidation. Photooxidation of histidine probably results in changes in the conformational stability of F1-ATPase leading to its inactivation. The participation of singlet molecular oxygen during the photooxidation process is suggested by the selective loss of histidine residues, while other amino acids, also sensitive to singlet oxygen attack, were not affected. Photochemical damage of F1-ATPase was prevented by various phenanthroline compounds, the order of efficiency being bathophenanthroline-Fe chelate greater than bathophenanthroline greater than orthophenanthroline-Fe chelate greater than bathophenanthroline-sulfonate-Fe chelate. The prevention by bathophenanthroline-Fe chelate of photochemical damage is interpreted on the basis of its interaction with the photosensitizer, Rose Bengal, probably implying a chemical reaction which decreases the actual concentration of the sensitizer and, thereby, the extent of photoinactivation.     

Photodecomposition of polystyrene on long-wave ultraviolet irradiation: A possible mechanism of initiation of photooxidation

The long-wave (λ < 3000 Å) photo-oxidation of polystyrene in solution at 25°C has been studied osmometrically. Two types of chain scission have been observed: a purely photo process which occurs completely independently of oxygen and which is attributed to fission of photolabile groups in the polymer, and another process associated with random photolyses of the products of oxidation Scavenger experiments with ¹³¹I₂ have shown that approximately two iodine atoms are incorporated per chain scission when photolysis is carried out in solution (benzene, hexafluorobenzene, methylene chloride) under high vacuum conditions in the presence of ¹³¹I₂. No iodine incorporation or chain scission occurs when ionically prepared polystyrenes are treated similarly. The nature of the photolabile bond has been discussed, and there is some evidence for a peroxidic linkage arising from oxygen copolymerization in the chains. It is suggested that fission of the photolabile groups contributes to the initiation of the long-wave photooxidation of the polymer.     

Oxygen scavengers and sensitizers for reduced oxygen inhibition in radical photopolymerization

Oxygen inhibition in the free‐radical photopolymerization of (meth)acrylates is one of the most challenging problems in thin film application. Apart from the utilization of an inert gas atmosphere, additives reducing oxygen inhibition due to production of new propagating centers are used. In the present study, a more straightforward approach to reduce oxygen inhibition by photosensitized generation of singlet oxygen and subsequent scavenging of these species by selective singlet oxygen trappers was investigated. The potential of 1,2‐dions conventionally used as type‐II photoinitiators for visible light polymerization to function as singlet oxygen generators was verified in sensitized steady state photooxidation experiments in solution. A set of furan and anthracene derivatives were tested as oxygen scavengers and their corresponding relative reaction rates were determined. The ability of these sensitizer/scavenger systems to reduce oxygen inhibition in practical applications was studied in photo‐DSC‐experiments. In thin film polymerization (investigated by ATR‐FTIR), the formation of insufficiently cured surfaces could be prevented by the usage of singlet oxygen trappers. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: 6916–6927, 2008     

PHOTOOXIDATION OF XANTHOBILIRUBIC ACID IN AQUEOUS SOLUTION: PRODUCT AND MECHANISM STUDIES

Abstract— Xanthobilirubic acid, an oxodipyrrylmethene with a chromophore very similar to that of bilirubin, was aerobically irradiated as its sodium salt in borate buffer at pH 8. Two photooxidation products, methylethylmaleimide and 5-formyl-2,4-dimethyl-1 H -pyrrole-3-propanoic acid, were isolated. These products can be rationalized on the basis of either a Type I or a Type II (singlet oxygen) photooxygenation mechanism. The reaction is inhibited by azide, a singlet oxygen quencher, and sensitized by methylene blue. However, both the self-sensitized and the methylene blue-sensitized reactions are enhanced, rather than inhibited, by high concentrations of 1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane, another known singlet oxygen quencher. It is therefore proposed that the diazabicyclooctane can also act as an electron donor.
The self-sensitized photooxidation of xanthobilirubic acid is an autocatalytic reaction. This is supported by the fact that addition of a previously irradiated solution to a freshly-prepared solution significantly increases the rate of photodegradation. A similar catalyst is formed, but much more slowly, from xanthobilirubic acid in the dark in the presence of oxygen.     

Pteridine. Teil LXXXI. Mechanismus der Photooxidation von 5,6-Dihydro-1,3-dimethyl-6-thioxopteridin-2,4(1H,3H)-dion

Mechanism of the Photooxidation of 5,6-Dihydro-1,3-dimethyl-6-thioxopteridine-2,4(1H,3H)-dione The mechanism of the photooxidation of 5,6-dihydro-1,3-dimethyl-6-thioxopteridine-2,4(1H,3H)-dione ( 9 ) has been investigated in dependence of the pH. Photooxidation of the anion species in weak alkaline solution takes place by singlet oxygen as well as the superoxide radical anion forming 1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-1,3-dimethyl-2,4-dioxopteridine-6-sulfinate ( 5 ) as the first detectable reaction product. In acidic medium, a more complex photooxidation process is observed leading, in a radical-chain mechanism, to 6,6′-dithiobis[1,3-dimethylpteridine-2,4(1H,3H)-dione] ( 6 ).     

PHOTOOXIDATION OF CHLOROPHYLL AND PHEOPHYTIN. QUENCHING OF SINGLET OXYGEN AND INFLUENCE OF THE MICELLAR STRUCTURE

Abstract— When chlorophyll(Chl) and pheophytin(Phn) are irradiated in Triton X-100 water binary solvents, singlet oxygen is formed in the medium in a higher yield for Phn than for Chi. Chlorophyll shows an irreversible photooxidation reaction and a chemical oxidation reaction when 1,3-diphenyliso-benzofuran (DPBF) is added to the solution. During the chemical oxidation, Chi is destroyed by an oxidizing agent that is a reaction product of the endoperoxide formed in the medium by the addition of singlet oxygen to DPBF. This reaction depends on the structure of the medium and has some characteristics of an oxidation by hydroxyl radicals. The highest yield is obtained with the micellar structure. Chlorophyll and Phn are readily oxidized by hydroxyl radicals generated using the Fenton reagent. This suggests that in the presence of Triton X-100, the Mg²⁺ ion of a Chi molecule plays a key role in the irreversible oxidation of the pigment.     

THE REACTIVITY OF CITRONELLOL and α-THUJENE WITH SINGLET OXYGEN. RATE CONSTANTS OF CHEMICAL REACTION and PHYSICAL QUENCHING*

The quantum yields of Rose Bengal sensitized photooxidation of citronellol and α-thujene have been determined as a function of added acceptor and compared with those of furfuryl alcohol as a standard. The results permitted the calculation of the corresponding rate constants of chemical reaction (k_T) and physical quenching (K_q) of singlet oxygen. The sum (k_T+ k_q) has been verified independently by a Stern-Volmer analysis of the singlet oxygen luminescence quenching. α-Thujene reacts faster with singlet oxygen than citronellol, physical quenching being negligible in both cases.     

SENSITIZED PHOTOOXIDATION OF WOOL BY FLUORESCENT WHITENING AGENTS. A DIRECT SPECTRAL STUDY

Abstract—A fluorescence spectral study has been made of the photochemical behaviour of two types of fluorescent whitening agents, a naphthotriazolylstilbene and a bistriazinylaminostilbene, in single fibres of wool. The photodecomposition of each molecule of the naphthotriazolylstilbene is accompanied initially by the photooxidation of up to 7 residues of trp in the fibre. Amino acid analyses show that his and met residues are also photooxidized. Inhibition of the photooxidation of these amino acids by sodium azide suggests that singlet oxygen is involved in the reaction.     

光氧化反应的研究VII. 赤霉酸甲酯的单线态氧反应

本文初次探讨赤霉酸甲酯的敏化光氧化反应规律及其在合成应用上的可能性。