Luminescence of water-soluble rh(III) porphyrins

The luminescent properties of complexes of rhodium(III) with three water-soluble porphyrins— meso-tetrakis(4-N-methyl pyridyl) porphyrin, meso-tetrakis(4-N,N,N-trimethyl aminophenyl) porphyrin, and meso-tetrakis(4-sulfonate phenyl) porphyrin—were studied. All three complexes were found to phosphoresce both at 77 K and in deaerated solutions at room temperature, with their fluorescence being very weak. The rate constants of radiative (k _p=40-60s^-1) and nonradiative deactivation of a triplet excited state were determined. It was ascertained that, in aqueous solutions, the phosphorescence is quenched by molecular oxygen via an energy-transfer mechanism that is accompanied by formation of singlet oxygen. The quantum yields of formation of singlet oxygen for all the metalloporphyrins studied were found to be close to unity, which is the quantum yield of formation of their triplet states.