Dimethyl sulfoxide acts as a mild room-temperature oxidant of luminescent porous silicon. The oxidation reaction is accompanied by a loss in photoluminescence intensity from the silicon nanocrystallites, indicating that the oxide formed under these conditions is electronically defective. The rate'of oxidation is reduced if the reaction is carried out in the presence of the radical traps 2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenol (butylated hydroxptoluene, BHT) or cumene. In addition, photoluminescence intensity is preserved if the DMSO oxidation reaction is carried out in the presence of high concentrations of BHT. The BHT is proposed to form a more electronically passive oxide layer by hydrogenating the surface radicals (dangling bonds) generated during the oxidation reaction.