Mechanism of oxidation of L-methionine by iron(III)-1,10-phenanthroline complex – A kinetic study

Kinetics and mechanism of oxidation of L-methionine by iron(III)–1,10- phenanthroline complex have been studied in perchloric acid medium. The reaction is first order each in iron(III) and methionine. Increase in [phenanthroline] increases the rate while increase in [HClO4] decreases it. While the reactive species of the substrate is the zwitterionic form, that of the oxidant is [Fe(phen)2(H2O)2]3+. The proposed mechanism leads to the rate law