Electron-transfer fluorescence quenching processes in coaggregates between excited N-alkylcarbazoles as electron donors and 2, 4-dinitrophenyl carboxylates or pentafluorophenyl carboxylates as acceptors

Electron-transfer processes facilitated by hydrophobic-lipophilic interaction ( HLI) between excited N-alkylcar-bazoles (1-n, n=4, 8, 12, 16) as electron donors and 2,4-dintrophenyl carboxylates (2-n, n = 4, 8, 12, 16) or pentafluorophenyl carboxylates (3-n, n = 4, 8, 12, 16) as electron acceptors have been investigated by means of fluorescence spectroscopy in aqueous or aquiorgano binary mixtures. The fluorescence quenching of -n * by 2-n or -n indicates that preassociation precedes the electron transfer. The extent of HLI-driven coaggregation of the acceptor and the donor may be assessed from the B value of the equation I0/I = A B Q]. The chain-length effect and possibly also a chain-fold-ability effect, as well as the solvent aggregating power (SAgP) effect have been observed. Comparison of the quenching constants (B) for 1-n * /2-n combinations and 1-n * / 3-n combinations shows that the order of increasing R values for the quenching processes is 3-n < 2-n.