Electrochemical and Electrogenerated Chemiluminescence Studies of Substituted Olefin-Cyanophenanthrene Mixed Systems

Several mixed systems containing substituted olefins such as transanethole and substituted 9-cyanophenanthrenes were investigated by electrochemical and electrogenerated Chemiluminescence (ECL)) techniques. The difference in the electrochemical behaviors of similarly structured cyanophenanthrenes is explained by the substituent effects on resonance stabilization of the electrogenerated species. The ECL of mixed systems mostly consists of the shorter wavelength emission from cyanophenanthrenes and the longer wavelength emission originated from an exciplex. Energy of exciplex emissions in the acetonitrile solution is linearly correlated with the reaction enthalpy of the electron transfer reactions between radical anions of cyanophenanthrenes and cation radicals of olefins studied.