Analysis of Hydrogen-Bonding Effects on Excited-State Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer from a Series of Phenols to a Re(I) Polypyridyl Complex

• In the present study of proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) reactions, the excited-state of a fac-[(CO)(3)Re-I(bpy)(4,4'-bpy)](+) (bpy = 2,2'-bipyridine and 4,4'-bpy = 4,4'-bipyridine) complex was reductively quenched by a series of phenols. A variation of substituents on the phenols substantially alters their pK(a) and E degrees values and provides an opportunity to study photoinduced PCET as a function of their redox properties. Analyses of absorption spectral changes indicate that the phenols form a weak hydrogen bond with the pyridinic nitrogen of the 4,4'-bpy ligand in the ground-state, and ground-state association, constant (K-A) values were determined. This H-bonded adduct quenches the excited Re complex by PCET from the phenol, to form the reduced and,protonated Re complex. The KA values-obtained aid quantitative evaluation of the rate constant for the PCET reaction in the H-bonded, adduct. Thus, photophysical studies and Mechanistic analysis indicate that the reaction occurs via a concerted mechanistic pathway, for the unsubstituted phenol and phenols with electron-withdrawing subtituents. Furthermore; the magnitude of the quenching varies systematically with the proton-coupled potentials of the phenols and not their hydrogen-bonding strength (as reflected in K-A). This study is one of the first detailed analyses of intermolecular H-bonding between a self-assembling metal complex and a series of substituted phenols in an effort to study their relationship with the kinetic parameters in a photoinduced CPET reaction.

Subject headings

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Kemi -- Fysikalisk kemi (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Chemical Sciences -- Physical Chemistry (hsv//eng)

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)