Absorption and electroabsorption spectra of carotenoid cation radical and dication

Radical cations and dications of two carotenoids astaxanthin and canthaxanthin were prepared by oxidation with FeCl₃ in fluorinated alcohols at room temperature. Absorption and electroabsorption (Stark effect) spectra were recorded for astaxanthin cations in mixed frozen matrices at temperatures about 160 K. The D₀→D₂ transition in cation radical is at 835 nm. The electroabsorption spectrum for the D₀→D₂ transition exhibits a negative change of molecular polarizability, Δα=−1.2·10⁻³⁸ C·m²/V (−105 A³), which seems to originate from the change in bond order alternation in the ground state rather than from the electric field-induced interaction of D₁ and D₂ excited states. Absorption spectrum of astaxanthin dication is located at 715–717 nm, between those of D₀→D₂ in cation radical and S₀→S₂ in neutral carotenoid. Its shape reflects a short vibronic progression and strong inhomogeneous broadening. The polarizability change on electronic excitation, Δα=2.89·10⁻³⁸ C·m²/V (260 A³), is five times smaller than in neutral astaxanthin. This value reflects the larger energetic distance from the lowest excited state to the higher excited states than in the neutral molecule.     

Cu(II) mediated generation and spectroscopic study of the tris(4-anisyl)amine radical cation and dication. Unusually shielded chemical shifts in the dication

The reaction of tris(4-anisyl)amine (TAA) with Cu(2+) ion leading to formation of the TAA radical cation and dication is described. Spectroscopic studies confirm the formation of the radical cation and dication. (1)H and (13)C NMR spectral studies reveal interesting structural features of the dication.     

Conjugated radical cation dimerization-driven generation of supramolecular architectures

The application of the homodimerization of the tetrathiafulvalene and 4,4‘-dipyridinium radical cation as a non-covalent driving force in supramolecular self-assembly has beensummarized.     

Highly effective binding of methyl viologen dication and its radical cation by p-sulfonatocalix[4,5]arenes

The binding behaviors and thermodynamic origins of p-sulfonatocalix[4]arene (C4AS) and p-sulfonatocalix[5]arene (C5AS) with methyl viologen (MV2+) have been investigated by the methods of isothermal titration calorimetry, NMR, and cyclic voltammetry, showing that the binding abilities of C4AS and C5AS and their host selectivity are dramatically pH-controlled, which is closely discussed from the viewpoint of thermodynamics. Moreover, the radical form of MV+* can also be effectively included by C4AS and C5AS.     

A triphenylamine double-decker: from a delocalized radical cation to a diradical dication with an excited triplet state

The redox properties and electronic structures of polycationic species were examined using a triphenylamine double-decker species. The double-decker has a strong electron-donating ability, and the spin in the radical cation is delocalized over the whole caged skeleton, despite no direct transannular π-π interaction between two TPA decks. Moreover, the diradical dication has spin-singlet character, despite the meta-phenylene linkage.     

A facile generation of radical cations via the action of nitroxides

Radical cations of aromatic amines and heteroaromatics were generated via the action of nitroxides in methylene chloride in the presence of trifluoroacetic acid.     

Photochemistry of the pi-extended 9,10-bis(1,3-dithiol-2-ylidene)-9,10-dihydroanthracene system: generation and characterisation of the radical cation, dication, and derived products

Flash photolysis of bis[4.5-di(methylsulfanyl) 1,3-dithiol-2-ylidene]-9,10(-dihydroanthracene (1) in chloroform leads to formation of the transient radical cation species 1.+ which has a diagnostic broad absorption band at lambdamax approximately 650 nm. This band decays to half its original intensity over a period of about 80 micros. Species 1.+ has also been characterised by resonance Raman spectroscopy. In degassed solution 1.+ disproportionates to give the dication 1(2+), whereas in aerated solutions the photodegradation product is the 10-[4,5-di(methylsulfanyl) 1,3-dithiol-2-ylidene]anthracene-9(10 H)one (2). The dication 1(2+) has been characterised by a spectroelectrochemical study [lambdamax (CH2Cl2) = 377, 392, 419, 479 nm] and by an X-ray crystal structure of the salt 1(2-) (ClO4)2, which was obtained by electrocrystallisation. The planar anthracene and 1,3-dithiolium rings in the dication form a dihedral angle of 77.2 degrees; this conformation is strikingly different from the saddle-shaped structure of neutral 1 reported previously.     

Electron impact generation of tetraazidocyclobutadiene radical cation from tetraazidopyridine-2-carbonitrile

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Kinetics of oxidation of benzyl alcohols by the dication and radical cation of ABTS. Comparison with laccase-ABTS oxidations: an apparent paradox

Laccase, a blue copper oxidase, in view of its moderate redox potential can oxidise only phenolic compounds by electron-transfer. However, in the presence of ABTS (2,2'-azinobis(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonate) as a redox mediator, laccase reacts with the more difficult to oxidise non-phenolic substrates, such as benzyl alcohols. The role of ABTS in these mediated oxidations is investigated. Redox interaction with laccase could produce in situ two reactive intermediates from ABTS, namely ABTS++ or ABTS*+. These species have been independently generated by oxidation with Ce(iv) or Co(iii) salts, respectively, and their efficiency as monoelectronic oxidants tested in a kinetic study towards a series of non-phenolic substrates; a Marcus treatment is provided in the case of ABTS++. On these grounds, intervention of ABTS++ as a reactive intermediate in laccase-ABTS oxidations appears unlikely, because the experimental conditions under which ABTS++ is unambiguously generated, and survives long enough to serve as a diffusible mediator, are too harsh (2 M H2SO4 solution) and incompatible with the operation of the enzyme. Likewise, ABTS*+ seems an intermediate of limited importance in laccase-ABTS oxidations, because this weaker monoelectronic oxidant is unable to react directly with many of the non-phenolic substrates that laccase-ABTS can oxidise. To solve this paradox, it is alternatively suggested that degradation by-products of either ABTS++ or ABTS*+ are formed in situ by hydrolysis during the laccase-ABTS reactions, and may be responsible for the observed oxidation of non-phenolics.     

The facile generation of a tetramethyleneethane type radical cation and biradical utilizing a 3,4-di(alpha-styryl)furan and a photoinduced ET and back ET sequence

Product analyses and nanosecond time-resolved spectroscopy on laser flash photolysis were studied for the photoinduced electron-transfer reaction of 3,4-di(alpha-styryl)furan (6a). A combination of these results, kinetic, density functional theoretical (DFT), and time-dependent DFT analyses enabled assignment of the absorption to the tetramethyleneethane (TME)-type radical cation (7a*+, lambda(max) = 392 nm) and the corresponding singlet biradical ((1)7a**, lambda(max) = 661 nm). These two intermediates were mechanistically linked to each other with a facile back electron-transfer reaction. The present studies provide a new method for the generation of aryl-substituted TME-type intermediates.     

Glutathione radical cation in the gas phase; generation, structure and fragmentation

Two different chemical methods have been used to form glutathione radical cations: (1) collision-induced dissociations (CIDs) of the ternary complex [Cu(II)(tpy)(M)]˙(2+) (M = GSH, tpy = 2,2':6',2'-terpyridine) and (2) homolysis of the S-NO bond in protonated S-nitrosoglutathione. The radical cations, M˙(+), were trapped and additional CIDs were performed. They gave virtually identical CID spectra, suggesting a facile interconversion between initial structures prior to fragmentation. DFT calculations at the B3LYP/6-31++G(d,p) level of theory have been used to study interconversion between different isomers of the glutathione radical cation and to examine mechanisms by which these ions fragment. The N-terminal α-carbon-centred radical cation, strongly stabilized by the captodative effect, is at the global minimum, which is 8.5 kcal mol(-1) lower in enthalpy than the lowest energy conformer of the S-centred radical cation. The barrier against interconversion is 18.1 kcal mol(-1) above the S-centred radical.     

Characterization of the radical cation and the dication species of polypyrrole by spectroelectrochemistry: Kinetics,redox properties,and structural changes upon electrochemical cycling

The reported optical study appraises the formation during the redox process of the polypyrrole (PPy) species starting from the allowed electronic transitions of the polymer. The redox mechanism is described by two monoelectromic transfers: PPPP^·+ + 1e^? (E₁) PP^·+(E₂)An evaluation of the absorbance coefficients of the cationic and dicationic species is provided. Chronoabsortometry allows the electrochemical parameters and kinetics of the processes to be estimated. The stability area of the species is discussed in terms of the electrochemical parameters. Relaxation of the system after different steps of charge transfer is studied. The equilibrium reactions are followed by a change in absorbance of PPy film. It appears that the redox potentials E₁ and E₂ of the couples are very close. For non-cycled polymer, the redox potential E₂ could be higher than E₁. In return, after cycling PPy with all the charge, structural alteration could reverse the order of formation of the species. The changes of the absorption diagram caused by cycling also sugest that the charge appears mainly in the dication form in that case.     

Tetramethylcyclobutadiene radical cation

The tetramethylcyclobutadiene radical cation has been generated photochemically in solutions of aluminum halide σ complexes of tetramethylcyclobutadiene. It decays thermally to a “dimeric” radical cation.     

Tin-centered radical and cation: stable and free

The first stable stannyl radical (tBu2MeSi)3Sn* (1) has been synthesized by the reaction of tBu2MeSiNa with SnCl2-dioxane in diethyl ether. The X-ray crystal structure and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) data of this radical show that 1 has a planar geometry, being a pi-radical in both the solid and the liquid states. One-electron oxidation of 1 with Ph3C+.B(C6F5)4- in benzene quantitatively produced the corresponding cation (tBu2MeSi)3Sn+.B(C6F5)4- (2), representing the stable free stannylium ion that has been fully characterized by X-ray analysis and NMR data. Being free, 2 features a record downfield shifted resonance for stannylium ions: +2653 ppm.     

Chiral organic radical cation and dication. A reversible chiroptical redox switch based on stepwise transformation of optically active tetrakis(p-alkoxyphenyl)ethylenes to radical cations and dications

Optically active tetrakis(p-alkoxyphenyl)ethylenes were found to function as reversible chiroptical switches upon redox transformations. Successive one-electron oxidations of chirally modified tetraarylethylene to the corresponding radical cation and then to the dication led to dramatic changes in the electronic absorption and circular dichroism (CD) spectra. The neutral species showed no color or CD in the visible region, while the radical ion was blue in color and exhibited a weak Cotton effect, with the dication green and giving an intense Cotton effect and a sign opposite that observed for the radical cation, at a longer wavelength. Molecular orbital calculations and X-ray crystallographic studies clearly indicate that the olefinic C=C bond is significantly twisted in the dication to minimize the electrostatic and steric repulsions. By lowering the temperature of the dication, the twist around the double bond is more firmly fixed in either P or M chirality to give a stronger Cotton effect and a larger anisotropy (g) factor. Since the spectral changes are completely reversible and reproducible for multiple redox cycles, this chiral redox system can be used in novel redox-driven chiroptical applications, such as molecular switches and memory devices, in which the information is written/read chiroptically in the ternary mode, giving zero CD signal in the neutral form, positive CD for the radical cation, and negative CD for the dication at a given wavelength.     

Methyl propionate radical cation

Examination of the reactions of the long-lived (>0.5-s) radical cations of CD₃CH₂COOCH₃ and CH₃CH₂COOCD₃ indicates that the long-lived, nondecomposing methyl propionate radical cation CH₃CH₂C(O)OCH ₃ ^+· isomerizes to its enol form CH₃CH=C(OH)OCH ₃ ^+· (ΔH _{isomerization} ? ?32 kcal/mol) via two different pathways in the gas phase in a Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer. A 1,4-shift of a β-hydrogen of the acid moiety to the carbonyl oxygen yields the distonic ion ^·CH₂CH₂C⁺ (OH)OCH₃ that then rearranges to CH₃CH=C(OH)OCH ₃ ^+· probably by consecutive 1,5- and 1,4-hydrogen shifts. This process is in competition with a 1,4-hydrogen transfer from the alcohol moiety to form another distonic ion, CH₃CH₂C⁺(OH)OCH ₂ ^· , that can undergo a 1,4-hydrogen shift to form CH₃CH=C(OH)OCH ₃ ^+· . Ab initio molecular orbital calculations carried out at the UMP2/6-31G** + ZPVE level of theory show that the two distonic ions lie more than 16 kcal/mol lower in energy than CH₃CH₂C(O)OCH ₃ ^+· . Hence, the first step of both rearrangement processes has a great driving force. The 1,4-hydrogen shift that involves the acid moiety is 3 kcal/mol more exothermic (ΔH _{isomerization}=?16 kcal/mol) and is associated with a 4-kcal/mol lower barrier (10 kcal/mol) than the shift that involves the alcohol moiety. Indeed, experimental findings suggest that the hydrogen shift from the acid moiety is likely to be the favored channel.