Hydrogen transfer in the reaction of p-phenylenediamine with chloranil

Stage of electron transfer between p-phenylenediamines and chloranil in methanol was studied and a strictly reversible redox conversion of reagents was observed at low temperatures of ?50 to ?90°C. At positive temperatures, the proton transfer initiates a polycondensation yielding a polyaminoquinone of brown color. The nature of the absorption bands of charge-transfer complexes in the visible spectral range is discussed. Quantum-chemical calculations of excited reaction complexes and of absorption spectra of polyaminoquinone were performed.