Sudipta Chatterjee

Hopping transport in HCl doped conducting polyaniline

Abstract The present work includes a study on the transport property based on the measurement of the electrical conductivity of HCl doped conducting polyaniline in the presence as well as in the absence of a magnetic field in the temperature range 1.8 K≤ T ≤300 K. It has been observed that the conductivity of the samples increases with increasing temperature and the conductivity ratio [ r = σ (300 K)/ σ (1.8 K)] is large for the sample having higher dopant concentration. A crossover from Mott ( T −1/4 ) to Efros–Shklovskii (ES) ( T −1/2 ) in temperature dependent conductivity of the samples is observed at 10 K. In the presence of a magnetic field the electrical conductivity varies as T −3/4 . From the plot of conductivity versus temperature, different physical quantities like density of states, molecular vibrational frequency, hopping distance and localization length have been determined.

Direct observation of intermediates formed during steady-state electrocatalytic O2 reduction by iron porphyrins

Heme/porphyrin-based electrocatalysts (both synthetic and natural) have been known to catalyze electrochemical O2, H+, and CO2 reduction for more than five decades. So far, no direct spectroscopic investigations of intermediates formed on the electrodes during these processes have been reported; and this has limited detailed understanding of the mechanism of these catalysts, which is key to their development. Rotating disk electrochemistry coupled to resonance Raman spectroscopy is reported for iron porphyrin electrocatalysts that reduce O2 in buffered aqueous solutions. Unlike conventional single-turnover intermediate trapping experiments, these experiments probe the system while it is under steady state. A combination of oxidation and spin-state marker bands and metal ligand vibrations (identified using isotopically enriched substrates) allow in situ identification of O2-derived intermediates formed on the electrode surface. This approach, combining dynamic electrochemistry with resonance Raman spectroscopy, may be routinely used to investigate a plethora of metalloporphyrin complexes and heme enzymes used as electrocatalysts for small-molecule activation.

Electrocatalytic O2-Reduction by Synthetic Cytochrome c Oxidase Mimics: Identification of a “Bridging Peroxo” Intermediate Involved in Facile 4e–/4H+ O2-Reduction

A synthetic heme-Cu CcO model complex shows selective and highly efficient electrocatalytic 4e(-)/4H(+) O2-reduction to H2O with a large catalytic rate (>10(5) M(-1) s(-1)). While the heme-Cu model (FeCu) shows almost exclusive 4e(-)/4H(+) reduction of O2 to H2O (detected using ring disk electrochemistry and rotating ring disk electrochemistry), when imidazole is bound to the heme (Fe(Im)Cu), this same selective O2-reduction to water occurs only under slow electron fluxes. Surface enhanced resonance Raman spectroscopy coupled to dynamic electrochemistry data suggests the formation of a bridging peroxide intermediate during O2-reduction by both complexes under steady state reaction conditions, indicating that O-O bond heterolysis is likely to be the rate-determining step (RDS) at the mass transfer limited region. The O-O vibrational frequencies at 819 cm(-1) in (16)O2 (759 cm(-1) in (18)O2) for the FeCu complex and at 847 cm(-1) (786 cm(-1)) for the Fe(Im)Cu complex, indicate the formation of side-on and end-on bridging Fe-peroxo-Cu intermediates, respectively, during O2-reduction in an aqueous environment. These data suggest that side-on bridging peroxide intermediates are involved in fast and selective O2-reduction in these synthetic complexes. The greater amount of H2O2 production by the imidazole bound complex under fast electron transfer is due to 1e(-)/1H(+) O2-reduction by the distal Cu where O2 binding to the water bound low spin Fe(II) complex is inhibited.

O2 reduction reaction by biologically relevant anionic ligand bound iron porphyrin complexes.

Iron porphyrin complex with a covalently attached thiolate ligand and another with a covalently attached phenolate ligand has been synthesized. The thiolate bound complex shows spectroscopic features characteristic of P450, including the hallmark absorption spectrum of the CO adduct. Electrocatalytic O2 reduction by this complex, which bears a terminal alkyne group, is investigated by both physiabsorbing on graphite surfaces (fast electron transfer rates) and covalent attachment to azide terminated self-assembled monolayer (physiologically relevant electron transfer rates) using the terminal alkyne group. Analysis of the steady state electrochemical kinetics reveals that this catalyst can selectively reduce O2 to H2O with a second-order k(cat.) ~10(7) M(-1 )s(-1) at pH 7. The analogous phenolate bound iron porphyrin complex reduces O2 with a second-order rate constant of 10(5) M(-1) s(-1) under the same conditions. The anionic ligand bound iron porphyrin complexes catalyze oxygen reduction reactions faster than any known synthetic heme porphyrin analogues. The kinetic parameters of O2 reduction of the synthetic thiolate bound complex, which is devoid of any second sphere effects present in protein active sites, provide fundamental insight into the role of the protein environment in tuning the reactivity of thiolate bound iron porphyrin containing metalloenzymes.

Electrocatalytic O2 reduction reaction by synthetic analogues of cytochrome P450 and myoglobin: in-situ resonance Raman and dynamic electrochemistry investigations.

Bioinspired electrodes have been constructed by physiabsorption of two air stable iron porphyrin complexes, one bearing an imidazole coordination and the other bearing a thiolate coordination. To control the electron transfer (ET) rate to these O2 reducing electrocatalysts, the complexes were immobilized on edge plane graphite electrode and alkyl thiol self-assembled monolayer (SAM) modified Au electrodes with varying chain lengths of the thiols. Catalyst immobilized SAM modified surfaces were characterized using surface enhanced resonance Raman spectroscopy (SERRS), and their electrocatalytic O2 reduction properties were investigated using rotating ring disc electrochemistry (RRDE). While the imidazole bound complex showed increase in partially reduced oxygen species (PROS) on decreasing ET rate, the thiolate bound complex showed the opposite trend, that is, the value of PROS reduced on decreasing the ET rate. SERRS coupled to rotating disc electrochemistry (SERRS-RDE) technique helps gain insight into the O2 reduction mechanism. The results obtained indicate that while the imidazole bound iron porphyrin complex reduces O2 through an inner sphere mechanism using a high-spin (HS) Fe(II) species, the thiolate ligated complex shows an inner sphere as well as outer sphere mechanism using a HS Fe(II) and low-spin (LS) Fe(II) species, respectively. The PROS formation by a HS Fe(II) species of this thiolate bound complex increases with decreasing ET rates while that of a LS Fe(II) species decreases with decreasing ET rates.

Selective 4e-/4H+ O2 reduction by an iron(tetraferrocenyl)porphyrin complex: from proton transfer followed by electron transfer in organic solvent to proton coupled electron transfer in aqueous medium.

An iron porphyrin catalyst bearing four ferrocenes and a hydrogen bonding distal pocket is found to catalyze 4e(-)/4H(+) oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in organic solvent under homogeneous conditions in the presence of 2-3 equiv of Trifluoromethanesulphonic acid. Absorption spectroscopy, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), and resonance Raman data along with H2O2 assay indicate that one out of the four electrons necessary to reduce O2 to H2O is donated by the ferrous porphyrin while three are donated by the distal ferrocene residues. The same catalyst shows 4e(-)/4H(+) reduction of O2 in an aqueous medium, under heterogeneous conditions, over a wide range of pH. Both the selectivity and the rate of ORR are found to be pH independent in an aqueous medium. The ORR proceeds via a proton transfer followed by electron transfer (PET) step in an organic medium and while a 2e(-)/1H(+) proton coupled electron transfer (PCET) step determines the electrochemical potential of ORR in an aqueous medium.

EPR, Resonance Raman, and DFT Calculations on Thiolate- and Imidazole-Bound Iron(III) Porphyrin Complexes: Role of the Axial Ligand in Tuning the Electronic Structure

Iron(III) porphyrin complexes bearing covalently attached imidazole and thiolate axial ligands are investigated using resonance Raman, electron paramagnetic resonance, and cyclic voltammetry. The thiolate ligand stabilizes a low-spin ground state in solvent-bound six-coordinate species, weakens the Fe-N(pyr) bonds, and shifts the Fe(III/II) potential more negative by ~500 mV relative to an imidazole-bound species. Density functional theory calculations reproduce the experimental observation and indicate that the covalent charge donation from thiolate to iron reduces the Z(eff) on the iron. This increases the Fe(3d) orbital energies, which changes the bonding interaction present in these complexes significantly. In particular, the increase of the Fe(3d) energies activates an iron-to-porphyrin π*-back-bonding interaction not present in the imidazole-bound complex.

Concerted Proton–Electron Transfer in Electrocatalytic O2 Reduction by Iron Porphyrin Complexes: Axial Ligands Tuning H/D Isotope Effect

The electrochemical O2 reduction by thiolate- and imidazole-bound iron porphyrin complexes and H/D isotope effects on 4e(-) (determined by rotating disc electrochemistry) and 2e(-) (determined by rotating ring disc electrochemistry) O2 reduction rates are investigated. The results indicate that a thiolate axial ligand shows an H/D isotope effect greater than 18 and 47 for the 4e(-) and 2e(-) O2 reductions, respectively. Alternatively, an imidazole axial ligand results in H/D isotope effects of 1.04 and 4.7 for the 4e(-) and 2e(-) O2 reduction, respectively. The catalytic O2 reduction mechanism is investigated in situ with resonance Raman coupled with rotating disc electrochemistry. The data indicate that the rate-determining step changes from O-O bond heterolysis of Fe(III)-OOH species for a thiolate axial ligand to an O-O bond heterolysis of an Fe(II)-OOH for an imidazole axial ligand.

Crossover from Mott to Efros-Shklovskii variable-range-hopping conductivity in conducting polyaniline

Abstract Electrical resistance and magnetoresistance of the HCl-doped polyaniline (PANI) in aqueous ethanol have been investigated at low temperature down to 1.8 K and in magnetic field up to 8 T. The weaker temperature dependence of resistivity characterized by the ratio, ϱ r = ϱ(1.8 K) / ϱ(300 K) indicates that a better homogeneity and less disorder can be obtained by protonation with HCl in ethanol media. The samples with resistivity ratio lying in the range 10 2 ≤ϱ r ≤10 3 exhibit a crossover from Mott to Efros-Shklovskii variable-range-hopping (VRH) conduction below 10 K. The Coulomb gap energy has been calculated and is small (0.22–0.04 meV).

Low temperature electrical conductivity of polyaniline-polyvinyl alcohol blends

Abstract Experimental results on electrical conductivity of polyaniline-hydrochloric acid (PANI-HCl) in polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) are investigated with PANI-HCl content above the percolation threshold. The negative temperature co-efficient of conductivity near the room temperature indicates the presence of intrinsic metallic character in the dispersed medium. The conductivity at low temperature has been analyzed on the basis of the superlocalisation of electronic states in the fractal structure of polyblends.