The molecular design, synthesis and photochromic properties of spirooxazines containing a permanent azo (hydrazone) chromophore
摘要:
A range of molecular modelling techniques has been applied to predict optimized geometrical conformations and energies of the ring-closed oxazine form and ring-opened merocyanine forms of three azospirooxazines. A comparison of the relative stabilities of the possible isomers of the merocyanines was carried out by applying molecular mechanics (augmented MM2), while the prediction of the potential for photochromic behaviour was made by comparison of the heats of formation calculated by AMI. Synthetic routes were explored and as a result two azospirooxazines were isolated, one of which showed interesting and unusual photochromic behaviour. The instability of this compound towards purification by chromatography was investigated. The decomposition product was isolated and characterized with the aid of single crystal x-ray crystallography. The correlation between predicted and observed photochromic behaviour is discussed. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
A photochromic compound represented by formula (I):
wherein one of X1 and X2 represents a hydroxyl group, a sulfonic acid group or an alkali metal sulfonate base, and the other of X1 and X2 represents a hydrogen atom; X3 and X4 each represents a hydrogen atom, a lower alkyl group having from 1 to 3 carbon atoms, a lower alkoxy group having from 1 to 3 carbon atoms, a halogen atom, a nitro group or a cyano group; and R represents a straight chain alkyl group having from 1 to 30 carbon atoms. The compound exhibits excellent color developability.
Novel photochromic compound and a polymer comprising the photochromic compound are disclosed. The novel photochromic compound of the present invention is a spirooxadine compound having an addition polymerizable organic functional group or a ring-opening polymerizable organic functional group.