Structure of Dimers and the Nature of Color in 4′-Nitro-4-dimethylaminoazobenzene Solutions

Abstract

A mechanism is proposed for the formation of stable dimers of 4′-nitro-4-dimethylaminoazobenzene dye (4′-nitro-DAB)₂ in solution, the existence of which in a vapor phase was established in 1965. It is shown that (4′-nitro-DAB)₂ dimers are stable also in neutral and moderately acidic solutions. Their UV–Vis spectra are similar to the spectra of the same solutions of 4-dimethylaminoazobenzene (DAB) containing DAB₂ dimers as the ground state. Like DAB₂, (4′-nitro-DAB)₂ dimers are reversibly converted to di- and triprotonated dimers under conditions of low and moderate acidity. In the process, the yellow color of the initial solution changes to red. It is concluded that the great stability of the dimers in the liquid and vapor phases is due to their inter-monomer bonds being formed with the participation of electrons promoted from the sp²- orbitals of N-atoms in azo-groups N=N to the Rydberg 3s-orbitals of the N=N-group (Rydberg bonds). It is established that at high acidities, the triprotonated dimers (the red solution) decompose reversibly into diprotonated monomers (the yellow solution). Structural formulas are proposed for the protonated species.