Copper complexes standard reduction potentials

TABLE 10.6 Standard Reduction Potentials of Copper Complexes in H20... 

The corrosion products of noble metals such as copper and silver are complex and affect the use of these metals as decorative materials. Under normal atmospheric conditions copper forms an external layer of greenish copper carbonate called patina. Silver tarnish is silver sulfide (Ag2S), which in thin layers gives the silver surface a richer appearance. Gold, with a positive standard reduction potential (1.50 volts), significantly larger than that for oxygen (1.23 volts), shows no appreciable corrosion in air. 

Different valence states are also a fairly widespread type of unit variability. By analogy with macromolecular complexes (Section II), it may be expected that homopolymerization and copolymerization of metal-containing monomers would prevent or retard redox processes involving participation of metal ions. Experimental data confirm the fact that a polymeric matrix stabilizes complexes of metals in low oxidation states (e.g., Pd" ). Moreover, the stability of the Cu+ state during polymerization (including thermal polymerization) of copper acrylate controls the use of this method for the preparation of coordination compounds of Cu". The polymeric framework plays a stabilizing role, whereas the metal ions that are localized on the surface layer are oxidized to Cu +. However, polymerization of monomers that contain metal ions in high oxidation states is often accompanied by their reduction Fe + ->Fe +, and Mo + ->Mo" (scheme 14). For example, polymerization of Cu " and Fe + acrylates may be accompanied by intramolecular chain termination. This may be attributed to the relatively low standard reduction potentials of these metal ions (7io(Cu + Cu+) = 0.15, o(Fe ->Fe ) = 0.77 V). 

Copper (I) complexes exhibit catalytic activity for the four-electron (4-e) reduction of O2 to water. Natural occurring enzymes like Cu-containing fungal laccase reduce O2 directly to water very efficiently at very positive potentials, not far from the thermodynamic standard potential of the O2/H2O couple. These enzymes involve a trinuclear Cu active site [149-153]. For this reason some authors have investigated the catalytic activity of Cu(I) complexes for ORR, in particular Cu phenanthrolines confined on graphite or glassy carbon surfaces [154-169], with the aim of achieving the total reduction of O2 via the transfer of four-electrons. 

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