Abstract
A homemade instrument for the measurement of oxygen concentration in aqueous solutions measures the decay rate of the phosphorescence of a Pd-porphyrin complex (phosphor) dissolved in the solution, which is flashed every 0.1 s with 630 nm light. The concentration of O2 is a linear function of the decay rate. The instrument is used to study the reaction of dithionite (S2O42-) with O2 at 25°C and 37°C. It is found that the ratio of dithionite to oxygen consumed in the reaction is 1.2 ± 0.2 at 25°C and 1.7 ± 0.1 at 37°C, suggesting a temperature-dependent stoichiometry. At both temperatures, the initial rate of O2 consumption, -d[O 2]/dt, is found to be 1/2 order in S2O4 2- and first order in O2. This finding is consistent with a previously proposed mechanism: S2O42- ↔ 2SO2- comes to a rapid equilibrium, and SO 2- reacts with O2 in the rate-determining step.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1511-1518 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Journal | Journal of Physical Chemistry A |
| Volume | 112 |
| Issue number | 7 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Feb 21 2008 |
| Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Physical and Theoretical Chemistry