Improving carbon dioxide solubility in ionic liquids

Previously we showed that CO2 could be used to extract organic molecules from ionic liquids without contamination of the ionic liquid. Consequently a number of other groups demonstrated that ionic liquid/CO2 biphasic systems could be used for homogeneously catalyzed reactions. Large differences in the solubility of various gases in ionic liquids present the possibility of using them for gas separations. More recently we and others have shown that the presence of CO2 increases the solubility of other gases that are poorly soluble in the ionic liquid phase. Therefore, a knowledge and understanding of the phase behavior of these ionic liquid/CO2 systems is important. With the aim of finding ionic liquids that improve CO2 solubility and gaining more information to help us understand how to design CO2-philic ionic liquids, we present the low- and high-pressure measurements of CO2 solubility in a range of ionic liquids possessing structures likely to increase the solubility of CO2. We examined the CO2 solubility in a number of ionic liquids with systematic increases in fluorination. We also studied nonfluorinated ionic liquids that have structural features known to improve CO2 solubility in other compounds such as polymers, for example, carbonyl groups and long alkyl chains with branching or ether linkages. Results show that ionic liquids containing increased fluoroalkyl chains on either the cation or anion do improve CO2 solubility when compared to less fluorinated ionic liquids previously studied. It was also found that it was possible to obtain similar, high levels of CO2 solubility in nonfluorous ionic liquids. In agreement with our previous results, we found that the anion frequently plays a key role in determining CO2 solubility in ionic liquids.     

Revisiting ether-derivatized imidazolium-based ionic liquids

A series of ether-derivatized imidazolium halides have been prepared and characterized. Contrary to literature reports, they are all crystalline solids and have melting points well above room temperature (50-100 degrees C). Single crystals of the imidazolium salts, obtained in situ by slow cooling from their molten state to room temperature, were analyzed by X-ray crystallography, revealing various anion-cation interactions in the solid state. Exchange of the halides with [Tf(2)N]- yielded room temperature ionic liquids with viscosities that are comparable to related 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium ionic liquids. Density functional theory combined with IR spectroscopy has been used to analyze the role of functionalization of the imidazolium side chain on the formation of the molecular and supramolecular structure of the compounds and its possible impact on their physical properties.     

Description of the pVT behavior of ionic liquids and the solubility of gases in ionic liquids using an equation of state

A molecular thermodynamic model developed previously for fluids of chain-like molecules has been extended to correlate the pVT behavior of ionic liquids and the solubilities of gases such as CO₂, C₃H₆, C₃H₈, C₄H₁₀ in various ionic liquids. The relative deviation between the calculated molar volume and experimental data is less than 0.2%. It is shown that this equation of state can be used to correlate the solubility of CO₂ in ionic liquids with only one temperature-independent adjustable interaction parameter, and the accuracy of the correlation can be further improved using two temperature-independent adjustable parameters. The water content of ionic liquids has a large influence on the calculated results. For systems with water content lower than 0.1%, the average relative deviations of bubble point pressure are 3.14 and 4.90% using two parameters and one parameter, respectively. For systems containing C₃H₆, C₃H₈ and C₄H₁₀ two temperature dependent adjustable parameters are needed to obtain a good fit, and the corresponding deviation of the gas solubility is less than 2%, except for C₃H₈.     

Thermodynamic modeling of the phase behavior of binary systems of ionic liquids and carbon dioxide with the group contribution equation of state

The group contribution equation of state (GC-EOS) was applied to predict the phase behavior of binary systems of ionic liquids of the homologous families 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate and tetrafluoroborate with CO2. Pure group parameters for the new ionic liquid functional groups [-mim][PF6] and [-mim][BF4] and interaction parameters between these groups and the paraffin (CH3, CH2) and CO2 groups were estimated. The GC-EOS extended with the new parameters was applied to predict high-pressure phase equilibria in binary mixtures of the ionic liquids [emim][PF6], [bmim][PF6], [hmim][PF6], [bmim][BF4], [hmim][BF4], and [omim][BF4] with CO2. The agreement between experimental and predicted bubble point data for the ionic liquids was excellent for pressures up to 20 MPa, and even for pressures up to about 100 MPa, the agreement was good. The results show the capability of the GC-EOS to describe phase equilibria of systems consisting of ionic liquids.     

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.     

Surface characterization of functionalized imidazolium-based ionic liquids

The surface composition of oligo(ethylene glycol) ether functionalized bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide ionic liquids has been studied by means of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). For [Me(EG)MIM][Tf 2N], [Et(EG) 2MIM][Tf 2N], and [Me(EG) 3MIM][Tf 2N], which vary by the number of ethylene glycol (EG) units (from 1 to 3), we have shown that the stoichiometry of the surface near region is in excellent agreement with the bulk stoichiometry, which confirms the high purity of the ionic liquid samples investigated and rules out pronounced surface orientation effects. This has been deduced from the experimental observation that the angle-resolved XP spectra of all elements present in the IL anions and cations (C, N, O, F, S) show identical signals in the bulk and surfaces sensitive geometry, i.e., at 0 degrees and 70 degrees emission angle, respectively. The relative intensity ratios of all elements were found to be in nearly perfect agreement with the nominal values for the individual ILs. In contrast to these findings, we identified surface-active impurities in [Me(EG)MIM]I, which is the starting material for the final anion exchange step to synthesize [Me(EG)MIM][Tf 2N]. Sputtering of the surface led to a depletion of this layer, which however recovered with time. The buildup of this contamination is attributed to a surface enrichment of a minor bulk contamination that shows surface activity in the iodide melt.     

Dielectric response of imidazolium-based room-temperature ionic liquids

We have used microwave dielectric relaxation spectroscopy to study the picosecond dynamics of five low-viscosity, highly conductive room temperature ionic liquids based on 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium cations paired with the bis((trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl)imide anion. Up to 20 GHz the dielectric response is bimodal. The longest relaxation component at the time scale of several 100 ps reveals strongly nonexponential dynamics and correlates with the viscosity in a manner consistent with hydrodynamic predictions for the diffusive reorientation of dipolar ions. Methyl substitution at the C2 position destroys this correlation. The time constants of the weak second process at the 20 ps time scale are practically the same for each salt. This intermediate process seems to correlate with similar modes in optical Kerr effect spectra, but its physical origin is unclear. The missing high-frequency portion of the spectra indicates relaxation beyond the upper cutoff frequency of 20 GHz, presumably due to subpicosecond translational and librational displacements of ions in the cage of their counterions. There is no evidence for orientational relaxation of long-lived ion pairs.     

碳纳米管与咪唑类离子液体相互作用机制的理论研究

离子液体(IL)与碳纳米管(CNT)形成的复合体系在许多重要领域有潜在的应用价值,然而人们对于其微观结构的理解尚不清晰,对IL与CNT相互作用机理的认识还存有争议.本文以(8,0)CNT与1-丁基-3-甲基咪唑六氟化磷IL为例研究了CNT与IL的相互作用,分别探讨了1-丁基-3-甲基咪唑阳离子([BMIM+])、六氟化...     

Self-aggregation of nonionic surfactants in imidazolium-based ionic liquids with trifluoromethanesulfonate anion

Self-aggregation of polyoxyethylene (POE)-type nonionic surfactants in ionic liquids, 1-butyl- and 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium trifluoromethanesulfonate (bmimCF₃SO₃ and emimCF₃SO₃), was investigated by means of ¹H-NMR chemical shift, dynamic light-scattering (DLS), and surface tension measurements. The surfactants showed no definite aggregate formation in bmimCF₃SO₃. This shows a remarkable contrast to the previous observation in bmimBF₄ and bmimPF₆, and demonstrates an importance of anion species to determine the property of ionic liquids as a solvent to support the self-assembly of amphiphilic compounds. On the other hand, the surfactants formed micelles in emimCF₃SO₃, which shows an importance of alkyl chain attached to imidazolium ring to determine the solvophobic interaction between surfactant hydrocarbon chains in imidazolium-based ionic liquids. The low solvophobicity of the surfactants to the ionic liquid composed of imidazolium cation with long alkyl chain is attributed to an affinity of the surfactant hydrocarbon chain to the imidazolium alkyl chain. The values of micellization parameters and surface adsorption parameters obtained for the surfactant solutions in emimCF₃SO₃ are reported.     

Bicyclic imidazolium-based ionic liquids: synthesis and characterization

We previously reported the use of imidazole as starting compound for preparing a bicyclic imidazolium ionic liquid, [b-3C-im][NTf₂], with an overall 29% isolated yield in four synthetic steps. This new room temperature ionic liquid was shown to be far more chemically stable than commonly used [bmim][PF₆], [bdmim][PF₆], and [bdmim][NTf₂]. Because of this intriguing chemical stability, it prompted us to develop a more generalized and high yielding synthesis so that molecular diversity of bicyclic ionic liquids may be explored. In this work, we amended the previous synthetic route by employing 4-chlorobutyronitrile or 5-chlorovaleronitrile as starting materials and successfully developed a five-step synthesis of a series of novel bicyclic imidazolium-based ionic liquids in 40-53% overall isolated yields. We investigated intrinsic reactivity of all bicyclic ionic liquids prepared and found that, under strongly basic conditions, among all tested ionic liquids the 5,5-membered [R-3C-im][NTf₂] ionic liquids were most stable to solvent deuterium isotope exchange while the previously reported [bdmim][NTf₂] ionic liquid was 50% deuterium exchanged at its C-2 methyl in 30 min at ambient temperature. Under identical condition, the commonly used [bmim][NTf₂] ionic liquid was deuterium exchanged instantaneously at its C-2 hydrogen. In the absence of bases, only [bmim][PF₆] was deuterium exchanged (50% within 1 h) and all other ionic liquids gave no detectable exchanges even after 25 days at ambient temperature. Moreover, both [bmim][NTf₂] and [bdmim][NTf₂] ionic liquids were readily methylated at C-2 position with methyl iodide under basic condition at room temperature. Under the same condition, [R-3C-im][NTf₂] and [R-4C-im][NTf₂] ionic liquids were completely stable and chemically inert. We envisioned that [R-3C-im][NTf₂] should be well suited as solvents for organic synthesis.     

Direct electrochemical reduction of hemin in imidazolium-based ionic liquids

The direct electrochemical reduction of hemin, protoporphyrin(IX) iron(III) chloride, ligated with strong or weak heterocyclic bases, was investigated in the ionic liquids (IL), 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([bmim][PF₆]) and 1-octyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([omim][PF₆]), using cyclic voltammetry and chronocoulometry. Hemin complexed with N-methylimidazole (NMI) or with pyridine had E_1/2 values slightly (4–59 mV) more positive in IL (without electrolyte) than in methanol (1.0 M electrolyte) using a gold electrode. NMI-ligated hemin had a lower E_1/2 than pyridine-ligated hemin in either IL, consistent with the stronger electron donor characteristic of NMI. [Bmim][PF₆] solutions consistently yielded E_1/2 values 30 mV more negative than [omim][PF₆] solutions. The diffusion coefficients D_o of hemin in the IL ranged between 1.50 and 2.80×10⁻⁷ cm² s⁻¹, while the heterogeneous electron-transfer rate constants k_s ranged between 3.7 and 14.3×10⁻³ cm s⁻¹. Cyclic voltammetry of hemin adsorbed to a gold surface through 4,4′-bispyridyl disulfide (AT4) linkages showed a large positive shift in the oxidation wave, indicating that adsorption stabilizes the reduced hemin state. The surface concentration Γ_o of the adsorbed hemin was determined to be 1.21×10⁻¹⁰ mol cm⁻², indicating the presence of one or more complete monolayers of hemin. These findings suggest that while hemin is electrochemically active in IL, its behavior is modified by the ligand field strength and surface adsorption phenomena.     

Ultrafast solvation dynamics of coumarin 153 in imidazolium-based ionic liquids

The dynamic Stokes shift of coumarin 153 has been measured in two room-temperature ionic liquids, 1-(3-cyanopropyl)-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide and 1-propyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate, using the fluorescence up-conversion technique with a 230 fs instrumental response function. A component of about 10-15% of the total solvation shift is found to take place on an ultrafast time scale < 10 ps. The amplitude of this component is substantially less than assumed previously by other authors. The origin of the difference in findings could be partly due to chromophore-internal conformational changes on the ultrafast time scale, superimposed to solvation-relaxation, or due to conformational changes of the chromophore ground state in polar and apolar environments. First three-pulse photon-echo peak-shift experiments on indocyanine green in room-temperature ionic liquids and in ethanol indicate a difference in the inertial component of the early solvent relaxation of <100 fs.     

Aerobic oxidation of alcohols in carbon dioxide with silica-supported ionic liquids doped with perruthenate

The replacement of toxic Cr(VI) for O2 and of chlorinated solvents for supercritical carbon dioxide (or ionic liquids) in the oxidation of alcohols remains hindered by the low selectivity and activity of the current heterogeneous catalysts. Using an integrated approach that combines sol-gel entrapped perruthenate as aerobic catalyst, an encapsulated ionic liquid as solubility promoter, and scCO2 as the reaction solvent, we have developed a system capable of rapidly converting different alcohols into carbonyl compounds with complete selectivity, including substrates which are otherwise difficult to oxidise. The methodology is generally applicable and may easily be extended to other waste-free, catalytic syntheses of fine chemicals.     

Mutual solubility measurements and correlations of imidazolium-based ionic liquid mixtures with alcohols

The mutual solubility of ionic liquids (ILs), 1-butyl-3-ethylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate, 1-butyl-3-propylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate, and 1,3-dibutylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate with alcohols, 1-propanol, 1-butanol, 1-pentanol, and 1-hexanol were measured at atmospheric pressure. Upper critical solution temperatures (UCSTs) were estimated from experimental results using a polynomial equation. The UCSTs increased as increasing the chain length of alcohol. On other hand, the decreasing UCSTs occurred when the alkyl chain length on the cation of ionic liquids increased. The (liquid + liquid) equilibrium data were correlated by the original UNIQUAC, extended UNIQUAC, and modified UNIQUAC models. The temperature dependence of the solubility of ILs in alcohols and alcohols in ILs is represented successfully using the UNIQUAC, extended UNIQUAC, and modified UNIQUAC models with a quadratic function of temperature for binary energy parameters.     

Ambient temperature imidazolium-based ionic liquids with tetrachloronickelate(II) anions

Deep blue tetrachloronickelate(II) salts of 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium cations [C_nmim]⁺ with intermediate chain lengths (n = 5, 7, 8 and an n = 4/6 mixture) have been prepared from imidazolium chlorides and NiCl₂. They are liquid at ambient temperatures (ca. 20 °C) and above, and display viscosities and thermal stability comparable to related [BF₄]⁻ compounds. The similarities may reflect the compensating effects of the dinegative charge of the [NiCl₄]²⁻ ion and its larger size.     

The thermochemistry of solvation of imidazolium-based ionic liquids in benzene

ABSTRACT

The present work is devoted to the thermochemical study of solvation of ionic liquids (IL) in benzene. The solution enthalpies of 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tricyanomethanide [EMIM][C(CN)₃], 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate [BMIM][BF₄], 1-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate [HMIM][PF₆], 1-octyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate [OMIM][BF₄], 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide [EMIM][NTf₂], 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide [BMIM][NTf₂] and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium trifluoromethanesulfonate [BMIM][TfO] in benzene were measured. The solvation enthalpies of imidazolium-based IL were calculated. Molar refractions of imidazolium-based IL form literature data on density and refractive indexes of IL were also calculated. The linear correlation between solvation enthalpy and molar refraction of IL was observed. This correlation can be used to calculate the vaporization enthalpy of imidazolium-based IL from solution calorimetry data.     

Molecular dynamics simulation of dual amino-functionalized imidazolium-based ionic liquids

In this work, the all-atom (AA) force fields were set up for three kinds of dual amino-functionalized imidazolium-based ionic liquids (ILs), composed by cations with different alkyl chain length and amino acid anion [Gly]⁻. The force field was based on our previous work and the default parameters were developed in this study. Molecular dynamics simulations were performed. Validation was carried out by comparing simulation densities with experimental data, and good agreement was obtained. Molar volume and heat capacity at constant pressure were predicted. Mean square displacements for these ILs were computed and these ILs were proved to move very slowly. It may be caused by hydrogen-bonded network between ions and the terminal azyl. To depict the microscopic structures of the ILs, many types of radial distribution functions were investigated. It is interesting to find that not only the cation and anion, but also the anions themselves will form hydrogen bonds.     

Dynamic solvation in imidazolium-based ionic liquids on short time scales

Steady-state and time-resolved Stokes shift data for the probe coumarin 153 in two imidazoles, six imidazolium-based ionic liquids, and several other solvents are presented. These results are consistent with our original suggestion (J. Phys. Chem. B 2004, 108, 10245-10255) that initial solvation is dominated by the organic moiety of the ionic liquid, and they show that for the imidazole-based liquids initial solvation is in all cases very rapid. Solvation by methylimidazole and butylimidazole is complete in 100 ps, and all of the imidazolium ionic liquids demonstrate similarly rapid initial solvation. Owing to the importance of determining the amount of initial solvation that is missed in a given experiment with finite time resolution, we discuss a method of estimating the intramolecular contribution to the reorganization energy. This method yields 2068 cm(-1) and is compared with an alternative method.     

Unexpected side reactions of imidazolium-based ionic liquids in the base-catalysed Baylis-Hillman reaction

Low yields are obtained when the Baylis-Hillman reaction is conducted in the presence of an imidazolium-based ionic liquid due to direct addition of the deprotonated imidazolium salt to the aldehyde. Ionic liquids are evidently not inert.