Solvation of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate in aqueous ethanol--a green solution for dissolving 'hydrophobic' ionic liquids

The relatively hydrophobic ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate has been found to be totally miscible with aqueous ethanol between 0.5 and 0.9 mol fraction ethanol, whereas the ionic liquid is only partially miscible with either pure water or absolute ethanol; the ability to dissolve 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate in a 'green' aqueous solvent system has important implications for cleaning, purification, and separations using ionic liquids.     

Selective fluorescence quenching of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by nitromethane within room temperature ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate

Recently discovered room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) show tremendous promise to replace volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Investigation of these RTILs as solvents is in the very early stages. Before the full potential of these RTILs is realized, much more information about them as solvent systems must be obtained. The applicability of one such RTIL, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (BMIM PF₆), as a solvent toward analysis for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) is explored. The steady-state emission behavior of six PAHs along with the fluorescence quenching by nitromethane within BMIM PF₆ is investigated. The steady-state emission of six PAHs showed a bathochromic shift in BMIM PF₆ compared to acetonitrile, indicating possibly a more dipolar environment. Further, the nitromethane quenching of PAH emission strongly suggests a selective nature as the emission from alternant PAHs are quenched while that from nonalternant PAHs is not. The PAH-nitromethane quenching behavior within BMIM PF₆ is compared with that observed in the polar aprotic solvent acetonitrile, and a polar and similar viscosity (to BMIM PF₆) solvent system, 90 wt.% glycerol in water. It is observed that the PAH-nitromethane quenching within BMIM PF₆ and 90 wt.% glycerol in water is less efficient than in acetonitrile. This observation is suggested to arise from solvent viscosity.     

Measurement and correlation of solubility of carbon dioxide in 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ionic liquids

The solubility of carbon dioxide in the ionic liquids 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate and 1-nonyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate was measured at temperatures of 293.15 and 298.15 K and pressure up to 4 MPa using a stoichiometric phase equilibrium apparatus. The measured data for 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate were in good agreement with existing literature data and new solubility data were reported for 1-nonyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate. The measured data were correlated using the group contribution non-random lattice fluid equation of state (GC-NLF EoS) proposed by Lee and co-workers. The group parameters for CG-NLF EoS were slightly modified at limited range to accommodate recent experimental data and better prediction at high pressure and long alkyl chains.     

The kinetics of thermal decomposition of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate

It is demonstrated that 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate decomposes in a vacuum in the temperature interval of T=(410 to 505) K according to zero-order kinetics with the activation energy EA=68.0+/-2.8 kJ.mol-1.     

TX-100/water/1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate microemulsions

Both ionic liquids and water are typical green solvents. In this work, the phase behavior of the ternary system consisting of ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (bmimPF6), TX-100, and water was determined at 25.0 degrees C. The water-in-bmimPF6, bicontinuous, and bmimPF6-in-water microregions of the microemulsions were identified by cyclic voltammetry method using potassium ferrocyanide K4Fe(CN)6 as the electroactive probe. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) and the UV-vis method were used to characterize the microemulsions. It was demonstrated that the hydrodynamic diameter (Dh) of the bmimPF6-in-water microemulsions is nearly independent of the water content but increases with increasing bmimPF6 content due to the swelling of the micelles by the ionic liquid. The UV-vis further confirmed the existence of water domains in the water-in-bmimPF6 microemulsions, and the salt potassium ferricyanide K3Fe(CN)6 could be dissolved in the water domains.     

A study on the liquid–liquid equilibria of 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate with ethanol and alkanes

This work demonstrates the ability of the 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate to act as an extraction solvent in petrochemical processes for the removal of alkanes from their azeotropic mixture with ethanol. LLE (liquid–liquid equilibrium) of the ternary systems hexane + ethanol + 1-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (HMIM PF₆) or 1-octyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (OMIM PF₆) and heptane + ethanol + OMIM PF₆ are carried out at 298.15 K and atmospheric pressure. Experimental liquid–liquid data are correlated by using different equations. The solute distribution ratio and the selectivity, determined from tie-line data, suggest the efficiency of the ILs used as solvents. A comparison with other IL, in terms of solvent capacity, is included. The liquid–liquid extraction process is simulated by using conventional software and the obtained results are shown.     

Photoisomerization of cyanine derivatives in 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate and aqueous glycerol: influence of specific interactions

Photoisomerization of two cyanine derivatives, 3,3(')-diethyloxadicarbocyanine iodide (DODCI) and merocyanine 540 (MC 540), has been investigated in an ionic liquid, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate and aqueous glycerol (93 wt % glycerol +7 wt % water) by measuring fluorescence lifetimes and quantum yields. The aim of this work is to understand how the rates of photoisomerization of DODCI and MC 540 are influenced by specific solute-solvent interactions besides the viscosity of the medium. For DODCI, it has been observed that the nonradiative rate constants, which represent the rates of photoisomerization, are almost identical in the ionic liquid and aqueous glycerol at given temperature, indicating that viscosity is the sole parameter that governs the rate of photoisomerization. In contrast, the photoisomerization rate constants of MC 540 have been found to be a factor of 2 higher in aqueous glycerol compared to the ionic liquid. The observed behavior is due to the zwitterionic character of MC 540, a consequence of which, the twisted state gets stabilized by the solute-solvent hydrogen bonding interactions in aqueous glycerol, thus lowering the barrier for isomerization.     

Fluorescence correlation spectroscopic studies of diffusion within the ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate

Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) measurements have been performed in order to determine the translational diffusion coefficients of three differently charged fluorescent probes (cationic: rhodamine 6G, neutral: 4-dicyanomethylene-2-methyl-6-p-dimethylaminostyryl-4-H-pyran, DCM, and anionic: fluorescein) dissolved within the common room temperature ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate, [bmim][PF6]. These experiments demonstrate that FCS is a rapid, sensitive, precise (typical RSD from 4-8%), and low-consumption screening tool for the determination of analyte mobility within microliter ionic liquid samples.     

Parametrization of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate/nitrate ionic liquid for the GROMOS force field

A united-atom model of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([BMIM][PF(6)]) and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium nitrate ([BMIM][NO(3)]) is developed in the framework of the GROMOS96 43A1(1) force field. These two ionic liquids are parametrized, and their equilibrium properties in the 298-363 K temperature range are subjected to validation against known experimental properties, namely, density, self-diffusion, shear viscosity, and isothermal compressibility. The ionic radial/spatial distributions, pi interaction, gauche/trans populations of the butyl tail, and enthalpies of vaporization are also reported. The properties obtained from the molecular dynamics simulations agree with experimental data and have the same temperature dependence. The strengths and weakness of our model are discussed.     

Isoconversional kinetic analysis of thermal decomposition of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate under inert nitrogen and oxidative air atmospheres

Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry - Non-isothermal decomposition of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([bmim]PF6) in inert nitrogen and air atmospheres was investigated by...     

Lipase-catalysed polyester synthesis in 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ionic liquid

1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ionic liquid was employed as a reaction medium for lipase-catalysed aliphatic polyester synthesis. Lipase PS-C exhibited excellent catalysis in polycondensation of diethyl octane-1,8-dicarboxylate and 1,4-butanediol at room temperature and at 60°C. A relatively high molecular weight polymer was obtained at 60°C.     

Raman and ab initio studies of simple and binary 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium ionic liquids

Raman spectra of the ionic liquids, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([C4mim][PF6]), 1-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([C6mim]Cl), and 1-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([C6mim][PF6]), and binary mixtures thereof, have been assigned using ab initio MP2 calculations. The previously reported anti and gauche forms of the [C4mim]+ cation have been observed, and this study reveals this to be a general feature of the long-chain 1-alkyl derivatives. Analysis of mixtures of [C6mim]Cl and [C6mim][PF6] has provided information on the nature of the hydrogen bonding between the imidazolium headgroup and the anions, and the invariance of the essentially 50:50 mixture of the predominant conformers informs on the nature of glass formation in these systems.     

Use of 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate room temperature ionic liquids as chelate extraction solvent with 4,4,4-trifluoro-1-(2-thienyl)-1,3-butanedione

Possible use of room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) as chelate extraction solvent was evaluated by using 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([bmim][PF₆]), 1-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([hmim][PF₆]) and 1-octyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([omim][PF₆]). These RTILs showed high extraction performance for divalent metal cations with 4,4,4-trifluoro-1-(2-thienyl)-1,3-butanedione (Htta). The extracted metals were back-extracted into 1 mol dm⁻³ nitric acid quantitatively. Furthermore, the extracted species were estimated as neutral hydrated complexes M(tta)₂(H₂O)_n (n= 1 or 2) for M = Ni, Cu and Pb and anionic complexes M(tta)₃⁻ for M = Mn, Co, Zn and Cd.     

Volumetric and compressibility behaviour of ionic liquid, 1-n-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate and tetrabutylammonium hexafluorophosphate in organic solvents at T = 298.15 K

Density and speed of sound measurements have been made on the systems containing the ionic liquid 1-n-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([BMIM][PF₆]) and some organic solvents having a wide range of dielectric constants. Similar studies have been carried out for tetrabutylammonium hexafluorophosphate ([TBA][PF₆]), which has common anion ([PF₆]⁻) with the studied ionic liquid. For the systems investigated, the apparent molar volumes and apparent molar isentropic compressibilities were determined and fitted to the Redlich–Mayer and the Pitzer equations from which the corresponding limiting values were obtained. These limiting values were used to obtain some information about ion–solvent interactions. Furthermore, using the ionic limiting apparent volume values for [TBA]⁺ from the literature and limiting apparent molar volume for the ionic liquid and [TBA][PF₆] obtained in this work, the ionic limiting apparent molar volume values for the cation [BMIM]⁺ in different organic solvents were also estimated.     

Multiprobe spectroscopic evidence for "hyperpolarity" within 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate mixtures with tetraethylene glycol

A hybrid, potentially green solvent system composed of tetraethylene glycol (TEG) and the ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([bmim][PF(6)]) was investigated across all mole fractions with regard to the solvent properties of the mixture. For this purpose, a suite of absorbance- and fluorescence-based solvatochromic probes were utilized to explore solute-solvent and solvent-solvent interactions existing within the [bmim][PF(6)] + TEG system. These studies revealed an interesting and unusual synergistic solvent effect. In particular, a remarkable "hyperpolarity" was observed in which the E(T) value, comprising dipolarity/polarizability and hydrogen bond donor (HBD) acidity contributions, at intermediate mole fractions of the binary mixture well exceeded that of the most polar pure component (i.e., [bmim][PF(6)]). Independently determined dipolarity/polarizability (pi*) and HBD acidity (alpha) Kamlet-Taft values for the [bmim][PF(6)] + TEG mixtures were also observed to be anomalously high at intermediate mole fractions, whereas hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA) basicities (beta values) were much more in line with the ideal arithmetic values predicted on a mole fraction basis. Two well-established fluorescent polarity probes (pyrene and pyrene-1-carboxaldehyde) further illustrated notable hyperpolarity within [bmim][PF(6)] + TEG mixtures. Moreover, the steady-state fluorescence anisotropy of the molecular rotor rhodamine 6G and the excimer-to-monomer fluorescence ratio exhibited by the fluidity probe 1,3-bis-(1-pyrenyl)propane demonstrated that solute rotation and microfluidity within the [bmim][PF(6)] + TEG mixture were significantly reduced compared with expectations based on simple solvent mixing. A solvent ordering via formation of HBD/HBA complexes involving the C-2 proton of the [bmim(+)] cation and oxygen atoms of TEG, as well as interactions between [PF(6)(-)] and the terminal hydroxyl groups of TEG, is proposed to account for the observed behavior. Further spectroscopic evidence of strong intersolvent interactions occurring within the [bmim][PF(6)] + TEG mixture was provided, inter alia, by substantial frequency shifts in the [PF(6)(-)] asymmetric stretching mode observed in the infrared spectra as TEG was incrementally added to [bmim][PF(6)]. Overall, our observations contribute to a growing literature advocating the notion that ionic liquids and certain organic solvents form ordered, nanostructured, or microsegregated phases upon mixing.     

FTIR study of Tween80/1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate/toluene microemulsions

With the aid of Tween80, an environmentally benign nonionic surfactant applied to medicine and food industry, the ionic liquid (IL) 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (bmimPF₆) formed IL microemulsions with toluene. The phase diagram of the ternary system was prepared at 25 °C. It was demonstrated that there were a single-phase region and a multiple phase region in the ternary phase diagram. The single-phase region could be further divided into toluene-in-bmimPF₆, bicontinuous, and bmimPF₆-in-toluene microemulsion regions by electrical conductivity. In particular, the microstructural characteristics of the microemulsions were investigated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The results indicated that it was the hydrogen-bonded interactions between bmimPF₆ and Tween80 that might be the driving force for the solubilization of bmimPF₆ into the core of the Tween80 aggregates.     

Effect of water, methanol, and acetonitrile on solvent relaxation and rotational relaxation of coumarin 153 in neat 1-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate

The dynamics of solvent relaxation in ionic liquid (IL)-water, IL-methanol, and IL-acetonitrile mixtures have been investigated using steady state and picosecond time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy. We have used Coumarin 153 (C-153) and 1-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([hmim][PF(6)]) as fluorescence probe and IL, respectively. The steady-state emission spectra showed that the gradual addition of cosolvents increases the polarity of the mixtures. In neat [hmim][PF(6)] and all IL-cosolvent mixtures, solvation occurs in two well-separated time regimes within the time resolution of our instrument. A substantial portion of the solvation has been missed due to the limited time resolution of our instrument. The gradual addition of cosolvents decreases the viscosity of the medium and consequently solvation time also decreases. The decrease in solvation time is more pronounced on addition of acetonitrile compared to water and methanol. The rotational relaxation time of the probe is also decreasing with gradual addition of the cosolvents. The decrease in viscosity of the solution is responsible for the decrease in the rotational relaxation time of the probe molecule.     

Effect of pressure on transport properties of the ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate

The self-diffusion coefficients (D) of the cation and anion in the ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([BMIM]PF6) have been determined together with the electrical conductivity (kappa) under high pressure. All three quantities strongly decrease with increasing pressure to approximately 20% of their atmospheric pressure values at 200 MPa. D(PF6-) is always less than D([BMIM]+), despite the larger van der Waals volume of the cation. The pressure effect on the transport coefficients is discussed in terms of velocity correlation coefficients (VCCs or fij), the Nernst-Einstein equation (ionic diffusivity-conductivity), and the fractional form of the Stokes-Einstein relation (viscosity-conductivity and viscosity-diffusivity). It was found that the VCCs for the cation-cation, anion-anion, and cation-anion pairs are all negative and strongly pressure-dependent, increasing (becoming less negative) with increasing pressure. However, when the values of the VCCs for a given isotherm are normalized relative to the corresponding atmospheric pressure values, they collapse onto a single curve, as might be expected because the pressure should affect the interionic velocity correlations in the same way for each type of interaction. These isothermal curves can be represented by the form exp(alphap + betap2). The Nernst-Einstein deviation parameter, Delta, which depends on the differences between the like-like ion and unlike ion VCCs (f++ + f-- - 2f+-), is very nearly constant under the conditions examined. The diffusion and molar conductivity (Lambda) data are found to fit fractional forms of the Stokes-Einstein relationship with the viscosity, (LambdaT) proportional, variant (T/eta)t and Di proportional, variant (T/eta)t , with t = (0.92 +/- 0.05), independent of both temperature and pressure within the ranges studied and common to the three independently determined properties.     

Hydrogen bond stabilization in 1,3-dimethylimidazolium methyl sulfate and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate probed by high pressure: the role of charge-enhanced C-H...O interactions in the room-temperature ionic liquid

The hydrogen bonding structures of room-temperature ionic liquids 1,3-dimethylimidazolium methyl sulfate and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate have been studied by infrared spectroscopy. High-pressure infrared spectral profiles and theoretical calculations allow us to make a vibrational assignment of these compounds. The imidazolium C-H bands of 1,3-dimethylimidazolium methyl sulfate display anomalous non-monotonic pressure-induced frequency shifts. This discontinuity in frequency shift is related to enhanced C-H...O hydrogen bonding. This behavior is in contrast with the trend of blue shifts in frequency for the methyl C-H stretching mode at ca. 2960 cm(-1). Our results indicated that the imidazolium C-H groups are more favorable sites for hydrogen bonding than the methyl C-H groups in the pure 1,3-dimethylimidazolium methyl sulfate. Nevertheless, both methyl C-H and imidazolium C-H groups are favorable sites for C-H...O hydrogen bonding in a dilute 1,3-dimethylimidazolium methyl sulfate/D(2)O mixture. Hydrogen bond-like C-H...F interactions were observed between PF(6)(-) and H atoms on the alkyl side chains and imidazolium ring for 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate.