Kinetics and Mechanisms: Oxidation Mechanisms of Some Selected Sulfur Compounds

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Dr. Reuben Simoyi, Department of Chemistry, West Virginia University, is supported by the Inorganic, Bioinorganic, and Organometallic Program of the Chemistry Division for studies of the oxidation mechanisms of sulfur compounds. Dr. Simoyi will study the kinetics and mechanisms of oxidation of selected sulfur compounds including thioureas, sulfinic acids, sulfonic acids, sulfide, and dimethyl sulfide. Oxidation of biologically relevant sulfur containing compounds including taurine, cysteine, isethionic acid, methionine and glutathione will also be investigated. The ultimate goal is a more complete description of chemical oscillators involving sulfur compounds, and an understanding of the pattern formation and symmetry-breaking bifurcations of these compounds. Techniques such as stopped and continuous flow methods, relaxation spectra, turbidimetry, EPR and NMR will be utilized. These systems are relevant to an understanding of sulfur abatement procedures in environmental pollution, and the amino acid studies may provide fundamental insights into their physiological importance. Sulfur is a unique element in the periodic table because it can occur in widely varying oxidation states (from -2 to +6), and it is thus quite reactive with metals, nonmetals and with organic compounds. These characteristics contribute to the environmental concerns associated with oxides of sulfur, which themselves are major atmospheric pollutants which can cause acid rain. The detailed reactivity of these and other sulfur compounds, especially those with environmental and biological significance, is not well understood. This project will help to elucidate the unusual reactivity patterns observed for these sulfur compounds, and will thus contribute to a broader understanding of their role in these important areas.