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Investigation of Photochemical Properties of C60 Aggregates in Water
Citation:
Kong, L., K. Chan, O. Tedrow, AND R. G. ZEPP. Investigation of Photochemical Properties of C60 Aggregates in Water. Presented at 237th ACS National Meeting & Exposition, Salt Lake City, UT, March 22 - 26, 2009.
Impact/Purpose:
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Description:
As an emerging new material with unique structure and properties, the behavior and fate of Buckminster fullerene (C60) in natural waters has gained increasing attention. Although the water solubility of C60 is extremely low, the formation of C60 aggregates in water could alter the mobility and reactivity of C60 with variations of environmental conditions such as light, pH, ionic strength, and presence of natural organic matter. This research focused on investigating the photochemical properties of C60 aggregates in water. To be more environmentally relevant, the C60 aggregates were prepared by mixing the C60 in water without involving organic solvents (i.e. THF, etc). C60 irradiation kinetics with simulated solar and monochromatic irradiation was investigated. The direct photoreaction of C60 water suspension following the initial six days exhibited first-order kinetics with an initial quantum yield of 1.4×10-5 at an irradiation wavelength of 366 nm. No apparent change in average particle size and surface charge was observed following the irradiation. The photoreactivity of C60 aggregated in water prepared by different methods was also compared.