Accelerating slow excited state proton transfer

Visible light excitation of the ligand-bridged assembly [(bpy)2RuaII(L)RubII(bpy)(OH2)4+] (bpy is 2,2′-bipyridine; L is the bridging ligand, 4-phen-tpy) results in emission from the lowest energy, bridge-based metal-to-ligand charge transfer excited state (L−•)RubIII-OH2 with an excited-state lifetime of 13 ± 1 ns. Near–diffusion-controlled quenching of the emission occurs with added HPO42− and partial quenching by added acetate anion (OAc−) in buffered solutions with pH control. A Stern–Volmer analysis of quenching by OAc− gave a quenching rate constant of kq = 4.1 × 108 M−1⋅s−1 and an estimated pKa* value of ∼5 ± 1 for the [(bpy)2RuaII(L•−)RubIII(bpy)(OH2)4+]* excited state. Following proton loss and rapid excited-state decay to give [(bpy)2RuaII(L)RubII(bpy)(OH)3+] in a H2PO4−/HPO42− buffer, back proton transfer occurs from H2PO4− to give [(bpy)2RuaII(L)Rub(bpy)(OH2)4+] with kPT,2 = 4.4 × 108 M−1⋅s−1. From the intercept of a plot of kobs vs. [H2PO4−], k = 2.1 × 106 s−1 for reprotonation by water providing a dramatic illustration of kinetically limiting, slow proton transfer for acids and bases with pKa values intermediate between pKa(H3O+) = −1.74 and pKa(H2O) = 15.7

Solar water splitting in a molecular photoelectrochemical cell

Solar water splitting into H2 and O2 with visible light has been achieved by a molecular assembly. The dye sensitized photoelectrosynthesis cell configuration combined with core–shell structures with a thin layer of TiO2 on transparent, nanostructured transparent conducting oxides (TCO), with the outer TiO2 shell formed by atomic layer deposition. In this configuration, excitation and injection occur rapidly and efficiently with the injected electrons collected by the nanostructured TCO on the nanosecond timescale where they are collected by the planar conductive electrode and transmitted to the cathode for H2 production. This allows multiple oxidative equivalents to accumulate at a remote catalyst where water oxidation catalysis occurs

Water-Soluble Mo3S4 Clusters Bearing Hydroxypropyl Diphosphine Ligands: Synthesis, Crystal Structure, Aqueous Speciation, and Kinetics of Substitution Reactions

The [Mo3S4Cl3(dhprpe)3]+ (1+) cluster cation has been prepared by reaction between Mo3S4Cl4(PPh3)3 (solvent)2 and the watersoluble 1,2-bis(bis(hydroxypropyl)phosphino)ethane (dhprpe, L) ligand. The crystal structure of [1]2[Mo6Cl14] has been determined by X-ray diffraction methods and shows the typical incomplete cuboidal structure with a capping and three bridging sulfides. The octahedral coordination around each metal center is completed with a chlorine and two phosphorus atoms of the diphosphine ligand. Depending on the pH, the hydroxo group of the functionalized diphosphine can substitute the chloride ligands and coordinate to the cluster core to give new clusters with tridentate deprotonated dhprpe ligands of formula [Mo3S4(dhprpe-H)3]+ (2+). A detailed study based on stopped-flow, 31P{1H} NMR, and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry techniques has been carried out to understand the behavior of acid−base equilibria and the kinetics of interconversion between the 1+ and the 2+ forms. Both conversion of 1+ to 2+ and its reverse process occur in a single kinetic step, so that reactions proceed at the three metal centers with statistically controlled kinetics. The values of the rate constants under different conditions are used to discuss on the mechanisms of opening and closing of the chelate rings with coordination or dissociation of chloride

Selectivity and Mechanism of Hydrogen Atom Transfer by an Isolable Imidoiron(III) Complex

This article discusses a mechanistic study of hydrogen atom transfer by an isolable iron (III) imido complex, LᴹᵉFeNAd (Lᴹᵉ = bulky β-diketiminate ligand, 2,4-bis(2,6-diisopropylphenylimido)pentyl; Ad = 1-adamantyl)