Free electron transfer from several phenols to radical cations of non-polar solvents

Electron-transfer reactions from phenols to parent radical cations of solvents were studied using pulse radiolysis. Phenols bearing electron-withdrawing, electron-donating and bulky substituents were investigated in non-polar solvents such as cyclohexane, n-dodecane, n-butyl chloride and 1,2-dichloroethane. The experiments revealed the direct, synchronous formation of phenoxyl radicals and phenol radical cations in all cases and in nearly the same relative amounts. This was explained by two competing electron-transfer channels which depend on the geometry of encounter between the parent solvent radical cations and the solute phenol molecules. The mechanism is analysed at a microscopic level, treating diffusion as a slow process and the local electron transfer as an extremely rapid event. Furthermore, the effect of various phenol substituents and solvent types on the electron-transfer mechanism and on the decay kinetics of the solute phenol radical cations was analysed. The results were further substantiated using a quantum chemical approach.