An EDXRF study of the photodecomposition of diorganyl ditellurides

Abstract

An EDXRF set-up has been used to generate mechanistic information on the photolytic and physicochemical events leading to deposition of free elements from various diorganyl ditellurides in different solvents and in a microemulsion system. The method is characterized by the use of 59.54 keV γ-rays as a monoenergetic radiation source and the decomposition process is studied through the change in count rate of the characteristic K α X-ray peak of tellurium in different ditelluride solutions. In the experimental work different aspects have been examined to optimize the sensitivity of the method. It has been found that in coordinating solvents, the rate of decay of dibenzyl ditelluride is much faster in comparison to diphenyl and dipyridyl ditellurides. Moreover, in dibenzyl ditelluride the decay is accompanied with the complete precipitation of elemental tellurium, whereas an adduct is formed by coordination of the solvent molecule with diphenyl/dipyridyl ditelluride. It has also been observed that the methyl substitution in organyl rings makes the ditellurides more stable while the microemulsion system exhibits faster decomposition.