Chemically Induced Dynamic Nuclear Polarization During Irradiation of Phenol in the Presence of Amides

Abstract

Irradiation of D2O solutions containing various phenols with aliphatic amides at pH values between 9 and 12 results in nuclear spin polarization which is observed as n.m.r. emission signals during irradiation. No polarization is observed for the phenols which include tyrosine, cresol, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, phenol, and others. For the amides which include acetamide, propionamide, N-methylacetamide, and N,N-dimethylacetamide, polarization was observed for only the protons on the carbon bonded to the carbonyl group. Because excited phenolate ions are known to eject electrons, it is proposed that the radical RĊ(O−)NR2 is formed by reaction of the amide with the hydrated electron. The polarization observed for the amides can be explained by reaction of RĊ(O−)NR2 with a benzosemiquinone radical via a radical pair.