Analysis and Characterization of Unknown Tris (bypyridine)
ruthenium (II) Chloride Derivative
Patrick Murphy / pmurphy@bellarmine.edu / Faculty
Advisor: Patrick Holt
While performing a fluorescence experiment on an existing solution
of RuBpy Tris (bypyridine) ruthenium (II) chloride the sample was found to have
different spectroscopic properties than expected. After further
characterization it was shown that the old sample had degraded into one or more
unknown compounds that exhibit similar but different properties. To discover
the identity of the unknown, various spectroscopic methods have been employed
to obtain a broad picture of the sample’s physical behavior. These findings
were paired with research from existing to literature to increasingly narrow
down the identity of the unknown. Methods of characterization employed so far
on the sample include fluorescence, UV-Vis spectroscopy, IR spectroscopy,
thermal lensing, and exposure to an ultraviolet reactor.
