Spectroelectrochemical characterization of polyselenide ions in N,N-dimethylacetamide
Abstract
Polyselenide ions formed by the reduction of variable amounts of electrodeposited selenium on a gold grid cathode have been studied in N,N-dimethylacetamide by voltammetry coupled with UV-visible absorption spectrophotometry. Grey selenium reduces in three successive steps to the stable ions Se82- (λmax=648, 453, 398 and 260 nm), Se62- (λmax=598, 440 and 260 nm) and Se42- (λmax=550, 417, 307 and 260 nm). Temperature and concentration effects gave no evidence to suggest the dissociation of Sex2- species, in particular Se62-→Se3•-.