Three new nitrones, 5-n-propyl-5-methyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide (PMPO), 5-n-hexyl-5-methyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide (HMPO), and 5-n-decyl-5-methyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide (DeMPO), amphiphilic versions of the spin trap 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide (DMPO), have been synthesized. A comparative study of the absolute rate constants for formation and decay of the tert-butoxyl spin adducts to these cyclic nitrones as well as 3,3,5,5-tetramethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide (M4PO) has been undertaken using esr kinetic techniques.