Radical electron oxidation

Subsequent studies (63,64) suggested that the nature of the chemical activation process was a one-electron oxidation of the fluorescer by (27) followed by decomposition of the dioxetanedione radical anion to a carbon dioxide radical anion. Back electron transfer to the radical cation of the fluorescer produced the excited state which emitted the luminescence characteristic of the fluorescent state of the emitter. The chemical activation mechanism was patterned after the CIEEL mechanism proposed for dioxetanones and dioxetanes discussed earher (65). Additional support for the CIEEL mechanism, was furnished by demonstration (66) that a linear correlation existed between the singlet excitation energy of the fluorescer and the chemiluminescence intensity which had been shown earher with dimethyl dioxetanone (67). 

Reactions with Parting of Radicals. The one-electron oxidation of cationic dyes yields a corresponding radical dication. The stabihty of the radicals depends on the molecular stmcture and concentration of the radical particles. They are susceptible to radical—radical dimerization at unsubstituted, even-membered methine carbon atoms (77) (Fig. 6). 

Fig. 6. One-electron oxidation and dimerization where (21a) is a dye, (21b) a radical cation, and (21c) a dimer.

Polymerization Initiator. Some unsaturated monomers can be polymerized through the aid of free radicals generated, as transient intermediates, in the course of a redox reaction. The electron-transfer step during the redox process causes the scission of an intermediate to produce an active free radical. The ceric ion, Ce" ", is a strong one-electron oxidizing agent that can readily initiate the redox polymerization of, for example, vinyl monomers in aqueous media at near ambient temperatures (40). The reaction scheme is... 

Radical cations can be derived from aromatic hydrocarbons or alkenes by one-electron oxidation. Antimony trichloride and pentachloride are among the chemical oxidants that have been used. Photodissociation or y-radiation can generate radical cations from aromatic hydrocarbons. Most radical cations derived from hydrocarbons have limited stability, but EPR spectral parameters have permitted structural characterization. The radical cations can be generated electrochemically, and some oxidation potentials are included in Table 12.1. The potentials correlate with the HOMO levels of the hydrocarbons. The higher the HOMO, the more easily oxidized is the hydrocarbon. 

One-electron oxidation of carboxylate ions generates acyloxy radicals, which undergo decarboxylation. Such electron-transfer reactions can be effected by strong one-electron oxidants, such as Mn(HI), Ag(II), Ce(IV), and Pb(IV) These metal ions are also capable of oxidizing the radical intermediate, so the products are those expected from carbocations. The oxidative decarboxylation by Pb(IV) in the presence of halide salts leads to alkyl halides. For example, oxidation of pentanoic acid with lead tetraacetate in the presence of lithium chloride gives 1-chlorobutane in 71% yield ... 

An intriguing class of persistent radicals are those formed by the one-electron oxidation of the hexagonal prismatic clusters Li2[E(N Bu)3] 2 (3.21, E = S, Se). The air oxidation of 3.21 produces deep blue (E = S) or green (E = Se) solutions in toluene. The EPR spectra of these solutions consist of a septet (1 3 6 7 6 3 1) of decets (Eig. 3.5). This pattern results from interaction of the unpaired electron with three equivalent 7=1 nuclei, i.e., and three equivalent I = 3/2 nuclei, i.e., Ei. It has been proposed that the one-electron oxidation of 3.21 is accompanied by the removal of an Ei" cation from the cluster to give the neutral radical 3.22 in which the dianion [S(N Bu)3] and the radical monoanion [S(N Bu)3] are bridged by three Ei" cations. 

A final class of multifunctional initiators is based on the use a (muUi)functional polymer and a low molecular weight redox agent. Radicals on the polymer chain arc generated from the polymer bound functionality by a redox reaction. Ideally, no free initiating species are formed. The best known of this class are the polyol-redox and related systems. Polymers containing hydroxy or glycol and related functionality are subject to one electron oxidation by species such as ceric ions or periodate (Scheme 7.23).266,267 Substrates such as cellulose,... 

Ce4+ is a versatile one-electron oxidizing agent (E° = - 1.71 eV in HC10466 capable of oxidizing sulfoxides. Rao and coworkers66 have described the oxidation of dimethyl sulfoxide to dimethyl sulfone by Ce4+ cation in perchloric acid and proposed a SET mechanism. In the first step DMSO rapidly replaces a molecule of water in the coordination sphere of the metal (Ce v has a coordination number of 8). An intramolecular electron transfer leads to the production of a cation which is subsequently converted into sulfone by reaction with water. The formation of radicals was confirmed by polymerization of acrylonitrile added to the medium. We have written a plausible mechanism for the process (Scheme 8), but there is no compelling experimental data concerning the inner versus outer sphere character of the reaction between HzO and the radical cation of DMSO. 

The stable (f-Bu2MeSi)3Si radical reacts with lithium in hexane at room temperature affording the silyllithium 7, with the central anionic silicon atom almost planar, whereas the one-electron oxidation with tiiphenylmethyl ion produces the corresponding silylium ion 8 (Scheme... 

Partenheimer showed (ref. 15) that when toluene was subjected to dioxygen in acetic acid no reaction occurred, even at 205 °C and 27 bar. He also showed that when a solution of cobalt(II) acetate in acetic acid at 113 °C was treated with dioxygen ca. 1 % of the cobalt was converted to the trivalent state. In the presence of a substituted toluene two reactions are possible formation of a benzyl radical via one-electron oxidation of the substrate or decarboxylation of the acetate ligand (Fig. 9). Unfortunately, at the temperatures required for a reasonable rate of ArCH3 oxidation (> 130 °C) competing decarboxylation predominates. As noted earlier, two methods have been devised to circumvent this undesirable... 

The reaction rate has also been greatly increased by the addition of a one-electron oxidant tris-(4-bromophenyl)aminium hexafluoroantimonate Ar3N SbF (Ar = / -bromophenyl)." This reagent converts the substrate to a cation radical, which undergoes ring expansion much faster." ... 

The iodine reaction is possibly a one-electron oxidation with the initial formation of a radical cation ... 

Many of the problems and misconceptions occurring for dithiolene compounds are related to the fact that the ligands are redox-active and can be oxidized to monoanionic radicals. Typical examples for this phenomenon are the mono and diradical complexes [Fe ( "bdt )( "bdt)(PMe3)] (9) and [Fe ( "bdf)2(PMe3)]-" (10) for which bdt and bdt are tcrt-butyl-dithiolene and its one-electron oxidized form. Originally, these and other bdt derivatives had been described as... 

From Free Radicals RR R"E This last synthetic route, involving the one-electron oxidation of the free radicals RR R"E with an appropriate Lewis acid such as PhjC, is one of the best methods for the extremely fast and clean formation of the element-centered cations RR R"E+. Although this approach requires the presence of the radical species as readily available starting materials, the recent synthesis of stable silyl-substituted radicals of the type (r-Bu2MeSi)3E (E = Si, Ge, Sn) (see Section 2.2.4.1.2) made such an approach a rather attractive and easily accessible synthetic route to the stable and free (r-Bu2MeSi)3E+ cations (Scheme 2.6)... 

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