CO2 triggering and controlling orthogonally multiresponsive photochromic systems

TA Darwish, RA Evans, M James, N Malic…

Index: Darwish, Tamim A.; Evans, Richard A.; James, Michael; Malic, Nino; Triani, Gerry; Hanley, Tracey L. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2010 , vol. 132, # 31 p. 10748 - 10755

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Citation Number: 38

Abstract

We report a new generic method of reversibly controlling the photochromism of spiropyrans. It was found that the photochromic effect of spiropyrans can be reversibly switched on and off by addition and removal of carbon dioxide (CO2) to spiropyran in alcohol solutions containing an amidine (ie, DBU) that acts as a CO2 sensitizer. Spiropyrans are not photochromic in the presence of DBU but photochromic when CO2 is subsequently added ...