Peroxyoxalate chemiluminescence is used in self-contained light sources, such as glow sticks, where oxidation of aromatic oxalate esters produces a high-energy intermediate (HEI) that excites fluorescence dyes via electron transfer chemistry, mimicking bioluminescence for efficient chemical energy-to-light conversion. The identity of the HEI and reasons for the efficiency of the peroxyoxalate reaction remain elusive. We present here unequivocal proof that the HEI of the peroxyoxalate system is a cyclic peroxidic carbon dioxide dimer, namely, 1,2-dioxetanedione.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhotochem Photobiol
November 2017
Mechanistic studies on the peroxyoxalate chemiluminescence are often conducted with imidazole as base and nucleophilic catalyst. However, it is also known that this compound, at high concentrations, leads to a drastic reduction in the chemiluminescence quantum yields, apparently due to the destruction of the high-energy intermediate. Consequently, the search for new catalysts for this transformation is of importance for mechanistic studies as well as analytical application.
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