Bodipy-ruthenium(II) tris-bipyridyl dyads for homogeneous photochemical oxidations

Two Bodipy-ruthenium(II) tris-bipyridyl dyads were synthesized for use as sensitizers in photochemical oxidation reactions of organic substrates. The synthetic strategy involved the use of a simple ‘click’ CuAAC reaction to link a Bodipy subunit with an organometallic ruthenium(II) tris-bipyridyl complex. The linking triazole bridge was used to minimize electronic coupling between the two subunits. The dyads showed improved performance on organic substrate photo-oxidation reactions compared to the control compound without the Bodipy moiety.