Photooxidation

Photooxidation is oxidation brought about by light. Oxidation can involve a chemical species losing electrons; it does not always mean that oxygen is added to a substance. In photooxidation, light induces the oxidation reaction .¹

One route begins when a chemical species absorbs light and becomes electronically excited, meaning that its electrons occupy a higher-energy state. The excited species can then lose one or more electrons. Another common route involves a substance reacting with oxygen under the influence of light .¹

When oxygen remains incorporated in the product of that second route, the process is also called photooxygenation. The terms therefore overlap, but photooxygenation describes a more specific outcome. Photooxidation therefore does not name a single reaction with one set of products .¹