Kinetic study of the complex reaction between copper(II) and 2-(2′-hydroxy-3′-methoxyphenyl)benzothiazole

2-(2′-Hydroxy-3′-methoxyphenyl)benzothiazole reacts with copper(II) in an ethanol/water mixture to form an O,S chelate which exhibits the remarkable property of changing the chelation site above a pH of ca. 5.0, to the O,N site. The detailed kinetics of this reaction in an ethanol/water mixture (3:1) at a temperature of 25 °C was investigated using a stopped-flow spectrophotometric technique employing a wavelength of 400 nm. The initial complex, Cu(O,S), is formed via a fast, reversible second-order complex formation step whereupon the formation of the Cu (O,N) follows first order kinetics. The Cu(O,N) complex is, however, unstable towards internal electron exchange and after the reaction is complete, a black polymeric material very slowly precipitates out of solution. Rate and equilibrium constants for the postulated reactions are presented and discussed.