Methylene flash photolysis

Electronic excitation from atom-transfer reactions appears to be relatively uncommon, with most such reactions producing chemiluminescence from vibrationaHy excited ground states (188—191). Examples include reactions of oxygen atoms with carbon disulfide (190), acetylene (191), or methylene (190), all of which produce emission from vibrationaHy excited carbon monoxide. When such reactions are carried out at very low pressure (13 mPa (lO " torr)), energy transfer is diminished, as with molecular beam experiments, so that the distribution of vibrational and rotational energies in the products can be discerned (189). Laser emission at 5 p.m has been obtained from the reaction of methylene and oxygen initiated by flash photolysis of a mixture of SO2, 2 2 6 (1 )-... 

The prototype o-quinone methide (o-QM) and / -quinone methide (p-QM) are reactive intermediates. In fact, they have only been detected spectroscopically at low temperatures (10 K) in an argon matrix,1 or as a transient species by laser flash photolysis.2 Such a reactivity is mainly due to their electrophilic nature, which is remarkable in comparison to that of other neutral electrophiles. In fact, QMs are excellent Michael acceptors, and nucleophiles add very fast under mild conditions at the QM exocyclic methylene group to form benzylic adducts, according to Scheme 2.1.2a 3... 

Flash photolysis studies<22) have indicated singlet methylene to be produced from the diazomethane-excited singlet upon loss of nitrogen followed by collisional deactivation to the triplet, the ground state multiplicity for this molecule. 

The laser flash photolysis of aromatic diisocyanate based polyurethanes in solution provides evidence for a dual mechanism for photodegradation. One of the processes, an N-C bond cleavage, is common to both TDI (toluene diisocyanate) and MDI (methylene 4,4 -diphenyldiisocyanate) based polyurethanes. The second process, exclusive to MDI based polyurethanes, involves formation of a substituted diphenylmethyl radical. The diphenylmethyl radical, which readily reacts with oxygen, is generated either by direct excitation (248 nm) or indirectly by reaction with a tert-butoxy radical produced upon excitation of tert-butyl peroxide at 351 nm. 

The term methylene is exclusively reserved for CH2. Spectroscopic investigations demonstrated that photolysis of diazo compounds in fact produces free carbenes. A flash photolysis of diazomethane gave methylene whose spectrum could be recorded 3i>. ESR-spectra were taken of a series of triplet carbenes which had been obtained by direct irradiation of diazo compounds in various matrices at low temperatures (see p. 97). 

Absorption Spectrum. Herzberg62-64 has observed two absorption systems of methylene in the flash photolysis of diazomethane in the presence of an inert gas. These features do not appear when the inert gas is absent. (See Sec. III-A for further discussion.)... 

Parker (71), on the basis of flash photolysis studies, proposed the following reaction scheme for photoreduction of methylene blue by ferrous sulfate in approximately 0.09N sulfuric acid. 

Various compounds were shown to sensitize the photochemical decomposition of pyridinium salts. Photolysis of pyridinium salts in the presence of sensitizers such as anthracene, perylene and phenothiazine proceeds by an electron transfer from the excited state sensitizer to the pyridinium salt. Thus, a sensitizer radical cation and pyridinyl radical are formed as shown for the case of anthracene in Scheme 15. The latter rapidly decomposes to give pyridine and an ethoxy radical. Evidence for the proposed mechanism was obtained by observation of the absorption spectra of relevant radical cations upon laser flash photolysis of methylene chloride solutions containing sensitizers and pyridinium salt [64]. Moreover, estimates of the free energy change by the Rehm-Weller equation [65] give highly favorable values for anthracene, perylene, phenothiazine and thioxanthone sensitized systems, whilst benzophenone and acetophenone seemed not to be suitable sensitizers (Table 5). The failure of the polymerization experiments sensitized by benzophenone and acetophenone in the absence of a hydrogen donor is consistent with the proposed electron transfer mechanism. 

The dynamics of reversible onium ion formation has been studied by generating carbenium ions in the presence of nucleophiles using pulse radiolysis or flash photolysis, and following the rate of disappearance of the carbenium ions by UV. As discussed in Chapter 2, the kinetics of reaction of various electrophiles with nucleophiles obey a general reactiv-ity/selectivity relationship. The rates of reaction of various nucleophiles with carbenium ions are summarized in Table 9. These rates often approach diffusion controlled limits (k 10 ° mol-,-L-sec l). The rates are slower for less nucleophilic and less electrophilic compounds, and are particularly slow with sterically hindered amines such as lutidine (2,6-dimethylpyridine) [63]. Solvent effects are minimal when the reactions are diffusion controlled, although tributyl amines react slower with carbenium ions in more nucleophilic dichloroethane than in methylene chloride. 

The flash photolysis of hexaarylbiimidazole produces imidazolyl radicals " which have been shown to be more nearly planar than the parent dimers ort/io-substituents in the aryl rings decrease the radical stability. The radicals oxidize electron-rich substrates by rapid electron abstraction from tertiary amines, iodide, and metal ions, and by hydrogen abstraction from phenols, mercaptans, secondary amines, and active methylene com-pounds." " Studies have been made of the photooxidation of /euco-triphenyl-methane dyes by these radicals." " ... 

Many varied laser systems have been used for ns-flash photolysis experiments. For example, the kinetics of the electron-transfer quenching of triplet methylene... 

Addition and Cyclization Reactions. Benzocyclobutenone undergoes ring opening on flash photolysis, to afford 6-methylene-2,4-cyclohexadienyl-ketene. A report has given details of the highly selective sequential addition and cyclization reactions illustrated in Scheme 6. The reactions in Scheme 6 show the results with -butyl acrylate, but other acrylate derivatives are also effective." Hoffmann and Goerner" have studied the electron transfer from... 

Photochemistry.—A few observations have been published on photochemical behaviour of chromium(m) complexes in aqueous acetone [CrCl(RNH2)5] cations and in non-aqueous media [Cr(NCS)6] in methanol and ethanol [Cr(bipy)3] + and [Cr(phen)s] + in DMSO . Relevant photochemical reports and comments on cobalt(ni) complexes refer to [CoXCNHa) cations (with X = Br, > NOa, - or N3 ) and to the [Co(CN)6] anion in aqueous alcohols and in a range of pure solvents. Laser flash-photolysis studies of [ReaCls " in acetonitrile product [ReCl4(MeCN)2l and in methylene chloride (no net reaction) indicate stronger solvation by the former solvent, but no direct rhenium-acetonitrile interaction in or before the rate-determining step. ... 

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