The Use of Spin-trapping in the Study of the Mechanisms of Radical Processes

Abstract

The review is devoted to the spin-trapping method developed in recent years and used to identify short-lived radicals (mainly in liquid phase) and to investigate the mechanisms of their reactions. Unstable radicals are accepted by a spin-trapping agent with formation of a fairly stable free radical which carries information about its short-lived precursor. The EPR spectra of the resulting spin adducts can be recorded in the liquid phase and are as a rule well resolved. The properties of various spin-trapping agents are described in detail and tables of the parameters of the EPR spectra of the adducts of spin-trapping agents with the trapped radicals are presented. The application of the spin-trapping method in the study of the mechanisms of radical processes in various fields of chemistry is considered. The bibliography includes 161 references.