INTERACTIONS AMONG POLY(4-VINYLPYRIDINE) GELS, QUINONE DERIVATIVES, AND SULFHYDRYL COMPOUNDS

Competitive interactions of sulfhydryl compounds and quinone derivativ es with poly(4-vinylpyridine) gels have been studied in organic solven ts. 7,7,8,8-Tetracyanoquinodimethane (TCNQ) oxidizes a sulfhydryl comp ound to disulfide, while TCNQ is reduced to an anion radical that reac ts with the gels. Adsorption of long-chain sulfhydryl compounds onto g els causes the gel swelling, whereas oxidation of the adsorbed sulfhyd ryl compound to disulfide by TCNQ, and therefore, its removal from the gel results in the gel shrinking. The larger the highest occupied mol ecular orbital energy of the sulfhydryl compound, the stronger its int eraction with a quinone derivative and thus the faster the removal fro m the gels, as revealed by HPLC.