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The reduction of ferrate(VI) to ferrate(V) by superoxide ions was studied over the pH range 2.6-13.0 using the premix pulse radiolysis technique. The pH dependence indicates that only the unstable protonated forms of ferrate, H2FeO4 (pKa3.5) and HFeO4- (pKa7.3) are reactive, k(HFeO4(-) + O2) = (1.7 +/- 0.2) x 10(7) M-1 s-1. The stable ferrate ion, FeO4(2-), showed no significant reactivity towards either hydrogen peroxide or superoxide anion. The rate constants for the spontaneous dimerization and decomposition of the protonated ferrates, e.g. k(HFeO4(-) + HFe04) approximately 250 M-1s-1, are orders of magnitude slower than their corresponding reduction reduction by superoxide indicating an outer-sphere mode of electron transfer for the latter process. In contrast the ferrate(VI) species H3FeO4+ (pKa = 1.6 +/- 0.2), H2FeO4, and HFeO4- oxidize hydrogen peroxide, e.g. k(HFeO4(-) + H2O2) = 170 M-1 s-1), at rates which correspond closely to their dimerization rates suggesting an inner-sphere controlled mechanism.

The Mossbauer spectra of both reduced and oxidized high-potential iron protein (Hipip) from Chromatium have been analysed using computer fits to theoretical spectra derived from a spin Hamiltonian. Fits to spectra obtained over a range of temperatures between 4.2 and 195 K and in applied magnetic fields up to 10.0 T lead to a consistent set of hyperfine parameters.These results are interpreted in terms of a model of the four-iron four-sulphide active centre which is consistent with its electronic and magnetic properties in both redox states. In the model for the reduced centre all four iron atoms have essentially the same valence, intermediate between ferric and ferrous, with the spins being coupled antiferromagnetically to give the centre zero net spin. The oxidized centre has one less electron which at low temperatures appears to have come predominantly from one pair of iron atoms which thus become ferric with the other pair remaining substantially unchanged. It is clear from the Mossbauer hyperfine parameters obtained from the computer fits to the low-temperature spectra that a larger magnetic moment is associated with the ferric/ferrous pair of iron atoms than with the ferric pair of iron atoms. This also explains the g values with an average of greater than 2 which are observed in electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements. At higher temperatures the differences between the electron charge density at the different iron atoms in the oxidized centre appear to become smeared out.The high-potential iron protein (Hipip) from Chromatium belongs to the class of iron-sulphur proteins which contain one four-iron four-sulphide centre per molecule. X-ray crystallographic studies on this protein show that the active centre consists of four iron atoms, each in a distorted tetrahedral environment of three labile sulphur atoms and a fourth sulphur ligand from a cysteine residue of the amino acid chain [l]. The four-iron and eight-iron ferredoxins also contain active centres of this type. It has been proposed that the centre can exist in three oxidation states [2], which may be designated C3+, C2+ a nd C1+. C 2 + corresponds to the equivalent states of oxidized ferredoxin and reduced Hipip, with C 3

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