Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Oxidation of Phenols to Quinones01:17

Oxidation of Phenols to Quinones

4.9K
In the presence of oxidizing agents, phenols are oxidized to quinones. Quinones can be easily reduced back to phenols using mild reducing agents. The electron-donating hydroxyl group enhances the reactivity of the aromatic ring, enabling oxidation of the ring even in the absence of an α hydrogen.
o-hydroxy phenols are oxidized to o-quinones and p-hydroxy phenols to p-quinones. Such redox reactions involve the transfer of two electrons and two protons. The reversible redox...
4.9K
Extraction: Advanced Methods00:56

Extraction: Advanced Methods

1.2K
Metal ions can be separated from one another by complexation with organic ligands–the chelating agent– to form uncharged chelates. Here, the chelating agent must contain hydrophobic groups and behave as a weak acid, losing a proton to bind with the metal. Since most organic ligands used in this process are insoluble or undergo oxidation in the aqueous phase, the chelating agent is initially added to the organic phase and extracted into the aqueous phase. The metal-ligand complex is...
1.2K
Formation of Complex Ions03:45

Formation of Complex Ions

26.4K
A type of Lewis acid-base chemistry involves the formation of a complex ion (or a coordination complex) comprising a central atom, typically a transition metal cation, surrounded by ions or molecules called ligands. These ligands can be neutral molecules like H2O or NH3, or ions such as CN− or OH−. Often, the ligands act as Lewis bases, donating a pair of electrons to the central atom. These types of Lewis acid-base reactions are examples of a broad subdiscipline called coordination...
26.4K
Ionic Bonding and Electron Transfer02:48

Ionic Bonding and Electron Transfer

51.4K
Ions are atoms or molecules bearing an electrical charge. A cation (a positive ion) forms when a neutral atom loses one or more electrons from its valence shell, and an anion (a negative ion) forms when a neutral atom gains one or more electrons in its valence shell. Compounds composed of ions are called ionic compounds (or salts), and their constituent ions are held together by ionic bonds: electrostatic forces of attraction between oppositely charged cations and anions. 
51.4K
Crystal Field Theory - Octahedral Complexes02:58

Crystal Field Theory - Octahedral Complexes

31.2K
Crystal Field Theory
To explain the observed behavior of transition metal complexes (such as colors), a model involving electrostatic interactions between the electrons from the ligands and the electrons in the unhybridized d orbitals of the central metal atom has been developed. This electrostatic model is crystal field theory (CFT). It helps to understand, interpret, and predict the colors, magnetic behavior, and some structures of coordination compounds of transition metals.
CFT focuses on...
31.2K
Complexation Equilibria: The Chelate Effect01:19

Complexation Equilibria: The Chelate Effect

1.4K
In complexation reactions, metal atoms or cations interact with ligands to form donor-acceptor adducts called metal complexes. Ligands that bind through one donor site are monodentate, ligands with two donor sites are bidentate, and those with more than two donor sites are polydentate ligands. For example, ethylene diamine is a bidentate ligand that binds through two nitrogen donor atoms, forming a five-membered ring. EDTA is a polydentate ligand that binds through four oxygen and two nitrogen...
1.4K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Unsupervised Data Driven Clustering of the Neurological Assessments of People With Traumatic SCI Focusing on Sensorimotor Complete Injuries.

Neurorehabilitation and neural repair·2026
Same author

Linking neurological status to functional outcomes in spinal cord injury: a multi-class, task-specific approach.

BMC biomedical engineering·2026
Same author

Exploring synthetic controls in rare diseases with a proof of concept in spinal cord injury.

BMC medicine·2025
Same author

Mobile authentication of copy detection patterns.

EURASIP journal on information security·2023
Same author

Multivariate Time Series Information Bottleneck.

Entropy (Basel, Switzerland)·2023
Same author

Variational Information Bottleneck for Semi-Supervised Classification.

Entropy (Basel, Switzerland)·2020

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Feb 25, 2026

Author Spotlight: Magnetometric Characterization of Intermediates in the Solid-State Electrochemistry of Redox-Active Metal-Organic Frameworks
06:53

Author Spotlight: Magnetometric Characterization of Intermediates in the Solid-State Electrochemistry of Redox-Active Metal-Organic Frameworks

Published on: June 9, 2023

2.7K

Electron Transfer between Electrically Conductive Minerals and Quinones.

Olga Taran1

  • 1Department of Chemistry, Emory UniversityAtlanta, GA, United States.

Frontiers in Chemistry
|July 29, 2017
PubMed
Summary

Abiotic electron transfer between minerals and organic molecules is widespread in marine environments. Pyrite and magnetite showed significant electron transfer with hydroquinones, with pyrite exhibiting superior electrocatalytic activity.

Keywords:
electrochemistry of mineralselectrochemistry of quinonesgeobatteryiron sulfidesorigin of lifepyriteredox gradients

More Related Videos

Characterizing Electron Transport through Living Biofilms
08:52

Characterizing Electron Transport through Living Biofilms

Published on: June 1, 2018

9.0K
Electrochemical Detection of Deuterium Kinetic Isotope Effect on Extracellular Electron Transport in Shewanella oneidensis MR-1
09:00

Electrochemical Detection of Deuterium Kinetic Isotope Effect on Extracellular Electron Transport in Shewanella oneidensis MR-1

Published on: April 16, 2018

10.8K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Feb 25, 2026

Author Spotlight: Magnetometric Characterization of Intermediates in the Solid-State Electrochemistry of Redox-Active Metal-Organic Frameworks
06:53

Author Spotlight: Magnetometric Characterization of Intermediates in the Solid-State Electrochemistry of Redox-Active Metal-Organic Frameworks

Published on: June 9, 2023

2.7K
Characterizing Electron Transport through Living Biofilms
08:52

Characterizing Electron Transport through Living Biofilms

Published on: June 1, 2018

9.0K
Electrochemical Detection of Deuterium Kinetic Isotope Effect on Extracellular Electron Transport in Shewanella oneidensis MR-1
09:00

Electrochemical Detection of Deuterium Kinetic Isotope Effect on Extracellular Electron Transport in Shewanella oneidensis MR-1

Published on: April 16, 2018

10.8K

Area of Science:

  • Geochemistry
  • Biogeochemistry
  • Electrochemistry

Background:

  • Long-distance electron transfer in marine environments influences iron, sulfur, and carbon biogeochemical cycles.
  • While bacterial electron transfer is known, abiotic electron transfer across minerals is poorly understood.
  • Conductive and semiconductive minerals play a role in marine electron transfer.

Purpose of the Study:

  • Investigate abiotic electron transfer between common iron minerals and hydroquinones.
  • Assess the electrocatalytic performance of minerals compared to standard electrodes.
  • Explore the implications of mineral-organic electron transfer for biogeochemical processes and the origin of life.

Main Methods:

  • Cyclic voltammetry was used to study electron transfer.
  • Electrodes were fabricated from iron minerals: magnetite, hematite, pyrite, pyrrhotite, mackinawite, and greigite.
  • Electron transfer was examined with hydroquinones, organic molecules found in carbon-rich sediments.

Main Results:

  • Pyrite and magnetite demonstrated increased electric current in the presence of hydroquinones.
  • Pyrite exhibited excellent electrocatalytic performance, outperforming glassy carbon electrodes.
  • Hydroquinone oxidation on pyrite surfaces was reversible, diffusion-controlled, and stable.

Conclusions:

  • Abiotic electron transfer between minerals and organic molecules is likely widespread in nature.
  • This process may contribute to anaerobic respiration, quinone cycling, and anoxic zone propagation.
  • Interactions between pyrite and quinones could represent an early analog for biological electron transport chains and energy sources for life's origin.