title: The importance of chain length for the polyphosphate enhancement of acidic potassium permanganate chemiluminescence.
abstract: Sodium polyphosphate is commonly used to enhance chemiluminescence reactions with acidic potassium permanganate through a dual enhancement mechanism, but commercially available polyphosphates vary greatly in composition. We have examined the influence of polyphosphate composition and concentration on both the dual enhancement mechanism of chemiluminescence intensity and the stability of the reagent under analytically useful conditions. The average chain length (n) provides a convenient characterisation, but materials with similar values can exhibit markedly different distributions of phosphate oligomers. There is a minimum polyphosphate chain length (∼6) required for a large enhancement of the emission intensity, but no further advantage was obtained using polyphosphate materials with much longer average chain lengths. Providing there is a sufficient average chain length, the optimum concentration of polyphosphate is dependent on the analyte and in some cases, may be lower than the quantities previously used in routine detection. However, the concentration of polyphosphate should not be lowered in permanganate reagents that have been partially reduced to form high concentrations of the key manganese(III) co-reactant, as this intermediate needs to be stabilised to prevent formation of insoluble manganese(IV).
authors.affiliation: Centre for Chemistry and Biotechnology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Brendan J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Holland
authors.affiliation: Centre for Chemistry and Biotechnology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Jacqui L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Adcock
authors.affiliation: Australian Centre for Research on Separation Science, School of Chemistry, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
authors.forename: Pavel N
authors.initials: PN
authors.lastname: Nesterenko
authors.affiliation: Australian Centre for Research on Separation Science, School of Chemistry, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
authors.forename: Anton
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Peristyy
authors.affiliation: Centre for Chemistry and Biotechnology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Paul G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Stevenson
authors.affiliation: Centre for Chemistry and Biotechnology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Neil W
authors.initials: NW
authors.lastname: Barnett
authors.affiliation: Centre for Chemistry and Biotechnology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Xavier A
authors.initials: XA
authors.lastname: Conlan
authors.affiliation: Centre for Chemistry and Biotechnology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia. Electronic address: paul.francis@deakin.edu.au.
authors.forename: Paul S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Francis
mesh_terms: D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D049449:Luminescence; D008163:Luminescent Measurements; D011122:Polyphosphates / Q000737:chemistry*; D011196:Potassium Permanganate / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D011122:Polyphosphates; D011196:Potassium Permanganate
keywords: Acidic potassium permanganate; Chemiluminescence; Enhancer; Sodium hexametaphosphate; Sodium polyphosphate