Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-chemistry-course-of-the-year-3-of-the-natural-sciences-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2022/paper-4/51/c/ii/solution
Past exam of the chemistry course of the year 3 of the natural sciences course of the University of Cambridge 2022 Paper 4 51 c ii Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-20
Event a probes electron transfer between the semiquinone and dianion. Benzoquinone's smaller framework localizes charge and undergoes a greater change in bonding and solvation on this reduction; a larger effective reorganization barrier can make its heterogeneous transfer insufficiently fast for Nernst equilibrium on the time scale. Anthraquinone's extended framework distributes the added charge and can support the more reversible response seen here.
This is a kinetic interpretation of quasi-reversibility, not a claim that benzoquinone cannot be reduced. Follow-up chemistry or adsorption can also distort peak separation and return-current ratios; scan-rate-dependent measurements would distinguish them from slow electron transfer. A single trace does not uniquely identify the cause.
New to topics? Read the docs here!