ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the current understanding of mechanisms of transmembrane oxidation-reduction across bilayer membranes with special reference to systems organized within vesicles and liposomes. In this regard, it has frequently been observed that adding lipophilic redox-active molecules and ions can dramatically enhance oxidation-reduction rates occurring across a variety of hydrocarbon barriers including, in addition to bilayer membranes, liquid membranes and bulk hydrocarbon phases. Emphasis is placed on the types of organized assemblies, and a critical assessment of proposed mechanisms based on recent findings is offered. Examples are drawn primarily from organized systems utilizing vesicles as the microphase, although the discussion is equally applicable to planar bilayer membranes. The chapter discusses selected examples germane to fundamental issues in transmembrane charge separation in artificial systems. Two frequently cited potential applications of membranes capable of vectorial transmembrane charge separation are in energy photoconversion/photostorage and chemically based nanoelectronics.
