Entropy-Controlled Cu(II)-Catalyzed Oxidation of N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine by Methylene Blue in Acidic Medium

Abstract

Abstract Kinetics of the oxidation of N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) by methylene blue (MB) catalyzed by Cu(II) have been investigated in presence of HCl. The reaction follows a first order kinetics in MB while the concentration order in NAC is zero. Hydrogen ions retard the rate of reaction. The reaction involves the participation of nanoparticles as revealed by SEM, XRD and FTIR techniques and a gel-like Cu-NAC network acts like the effective catalyst. The reaction conforms to Eley-Rideal mechanism at lower [NAC] while at higher [NAC], the kinetics are explained by extended Eley-Rideal mechanism. The reaction is regulated by the size and morphology of the nanoparticles and is controlled by the entropy of activation.