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Iron(III)-containing aqueous solutions of 5-methylresorcinol (5-MR), 5-n-propylresorcinol (5-n-PR) and 4-n-hexylresorcinol (4-n-HR) at pH ~ 3 were studied by means of 57Fe transmission Mossbauer spectroscopy. Kinetic considerations were applied to the redox reactions. Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations were performed for the alkylresorcinol (AR) molecules and their non-alkylated analogue (resorcinol). Mossbauer spectra consisted of quadrupole doublets assigned to high-spin Fe(III) and Fe(II) species. From changes in their relative spectral areas, a gradual reduction of Fe(III) by all the ARs studied was observed. However, significant differences were found for the reduction rates among the ARs. The following series of the reduction rates was established by means of Mossbauer spectroscopy: 4-n-HR ≫ 5-MR > 5-n-PR, supplemented by rate constants calculated using a kinetic model. DFT calculations resulted in the following series: 4-n-HR ≫ 5-n-PR > 5-MR ≫ resorcinol (the latter is not oxidised under the conditions applied). The reversed order of the experimentally observed 5-MR and 5-n-PR oxidation rates may be explained in terms of their different kinetic parameters related to their structure.

The compound Fe[C(SiMe3)3]2 has been prepared and investigated by the means of powder X-ray diffractometry and 57Fe Mossbauer spectroscopy. The compound’s unique geometry, in which iron is linearly coordinated by the two C(SiMe3)3 ligands, results in a unusual electronic structure of iron, which is visualized as an extreme high hyperfine magnetic field of 157.5(8) T as sensed by the 57Fe nucleus at T = 20 K. In order to obtain information on the electronic structure of iron and on the bonds to the ligands, DFT (density functional theory) calculations were carried out on Fe[C(SiMe3)3]2. The high-spin state of iron was found to be energetically favored: an Fe(II) electron configuration of 3d5.83 4s0.72 is predicted, where the 4s electron density is only slightly polarized, and most of the unpaired electrons have 3d character. By assuming a linear crystal field, and associated 3d level scheme as a starting point, it is suggested that the extreme high hyperfine magnetic field, observed along with an apparently negative quadrupole splitting, is perpendicular to the C–Fe(II)–C bond axis, and can be decomposed mainly into contact (B c ≈ 44 T), dipolar (B d ≈ 14 T), and orbital (B L ≈ 99 T) hyperfine magnetic field contributions.

The influence of water on the interaction between iron(III) and indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) was studied in different organic solutions using rapid-scan stopped-flow spectrophotometry and rapid-freeze/quench Mossbauer spectroscopy. Measurements were also performed in ethanol–water and acetone–water mixtures. The results showed that the interaction between FeIII and IAA resulted in dimeric FeIII–IAA complex within 1 s, followed by a slow second step to give Fe2+ and IAA(oxidized). No such products were formed in the absence of water. The visible and Mossbauer spectra reflect the nature of the organic solvent and that of the anion of iron(III) salts.

The chemical reactions between iron(III) and indole-3-acetic (IAA), -propionic (IPA), and -butyric (IBA) acids were studied in acidic aqueous solutions. The motivation of this work was that IAA is one of the most powerful natural plant-growth-regulating substances (phytohormones of the auxin series). Mossbauer spectra of the frozen aqueous solutions of iron(III) with indole-3-alkanoic acids as ligands (L), showed parallel reactions between Fe3+ and the ligands. Partly, it resulted in a complex formation which precipitated in aqueous solution and partly, in a redox process with iron(II) and the oxidised indole-3-alkanoic acids as products. The Mossbauer parameters of the Fe2+ species suggested a hexaaquo coordination environment. The chemical composition and coordination structure of the precipitated complexes were investigated using elemental analysis, Mossbauer spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopic techniques. The complexes were soluble in some organic solvents. So, Mossbauer, FTIR and solution X-ray diffraction measurements were carried out on the solution of complexes in acetone, hexadeutero acetone and methanol, respectively. The data obtained supported the existence of the μ-dihydroxo-bridging structure of the dimer: [L2Fe FeL2] (where L is indole-3-propionate, -acetate or -butyrate).