Broadening the scope of photostimulated SmI₂ reductions

A study was conducted to demonstrate that the exploitation of the biomolecular process significantly broadened the scope of photostimulated SmI₂ reduction. Two UV cells containing naphthalene, SmI₂, and MeOH were set up under a preliminary test and one of them was exposed to a simple UV lamp, while the other was placed on the bench as a control under ordinary laboratory fluorescent lighting. It was observed that the reaction in the cell under the UV lamp progressed slowly, while significant reaction took place in the cell on the bench. Significant reaction was also observed when the same reaction was carried out with a mercury lamp and a filter that cut off wavelengths below 600 nm. Two methods were employed for the assessment of the photostimulated reactions. One of the methods was based on the fact that stopped flow irradiated the sample continuously in the diode array mode.