Herein, we modulate the chromic response of a highly colored tetrapyrrole macrocycle, namely, tetrakis(3,5‐di‐tert‐butyl‐4‐oxocyclohexadien‐2,5‐yl)porphyrinogen (OxP) by structural modification. N‐Benzylation at the macrocyclic nitrogen atoms leads to stepwise elimination of the two calix[4]pyrrole‐type binding sites of OxP and serial variation of the chromic properties of the products, double N‐benzylated Bz2OxP and tetra N‐benzylated Bz4OxP. The halochromic (response to acidity) and solvatochromic (response to solvent polarity) properties were studied by using UV/Vis spectroscopy and NMR spectroscopy in nonpolar organic solvents. Titration experiments were used to generate binding isotherms to elucidate their binding properties with difluoroacetic acid. Differences in the halochromic properties of the compounds allowed construction of a colorimetric scale of acidity in nonpolar solvents, as the compounds in the series OxP, Bz2OxP, and Bz4OxP are increasingly difficult to protonate but maintain their propensity to change color upon protonation. The concurrent effects of binding‐site blocking and modulation of acidity sensitivity are important new aspects for the development of colorimetric indicators.
Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) lineshape analysis is a powerful tool for the study of chemical kinetics. Here we provide techniques for analysis of the relationship between experimentally observed spin kinetics (transitions between different environments $$A,B,\dots$$
A
,
B
,
⋯
) and corresponding chemical kinetics (transitions between distinct chemical species; e.g., free host and complexed host molecule). The advantages of using analytical solutions for two-, three- or generally N-state exchange lineshapes (without J-coupling) over the widely used numerical calculation for NMR spectral fitting are presented. Several aspects of exchange kinetics including the generalization of coalescence conditions in two-state exchange, the possibility of multiple processes between two states, and differences between equilibrium and steady-state modes are discussed. ‘Reduced equivalent schemes’ are introduced for spin kinetics containing fast-exchanging states, effectively reducing the number of exchanging states. The theoretical results have been used to analyze a host–guest system containing an oxoporphyrinogen complexed with camphorsulfonic acid and several other literature examples, including isomerization, protein kinetics, or enzymatic reactions. The theoretical treatment and experimental examples present an expansion of the systematic approach to rigorous analyses of systems with rich chemical kinetics through NMR lineshape analysis.
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