Here we present the synthesis and application of various ferracarborane and tris(bipyridyl) ruthenium(II) complexes. Preliminary studies have shown that the ferracarborane complex NHMe3[Fe(3,1,2-C2B9H10)2] can act as a phosphorescence quencher for [Ru(bipy)3](PF6)2. The quenching mechanism was investigated by monitoring the efficiency of triplet state quenching at various viscosities through variation of solvent and solvent temperature. These studies revealed that quenching primarily occurs through dynamic quenching, where the ferracarborane acceptor depletes energy from the triplet state donor through non-radiative collisional impacts in solution. Other preliminary work on the ferracarborane complex [3,3'-Fe-1,2-C2B9H11-8-O(CH2)2O(CH2)2NH3-1,2-C2B9H10] has revealed that the pendant aminoether chain can function like a crown ether, effectively chelating to small cations. In this work we aim to create a tethered ferracarborane-ruthenium complex that takes advantage of this to act as an optical sensor for small cations such as Li+. Other ferracarborane applications include shifting the reduction potential of the FeIII/II center to match the reduction potential of FAD, the cofactor of glucose oxidase. A successful anodic shift in reduction potential was observed through replacement of B-H bonds with B-Br bonds on the carborane cages to create a mono- and dibrominated complex.

Ferracarborane-ruthenium tris(bipyridyl) complexes as optical small cation sensors

247th National Meeting (2014)

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