Microwave-assisted synthesis of novel imidazolium-based ionic liquid crystalline dimers

Microwave promoted synthesis of novel imidazolium-based ionic liquid crystalline dimers containing calamitic-calamitic, calamitic-discotic and discotic-discotic moieties is reported. Classical reactions failed to produce these dimers. The thermotropic liquid crystalline properties of these salts were investigated by polarizing optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffractometry. These salts, except the one having calamitic-discotic units, with bromide as counter ion were found to be mesomorphic over a wide temperature range.     

Design and synthesis of novel ionic liquid/liquid crystals (ILCs) with axial chirality

As the first examples of axially chiral ionic liquids, new pyridinium salts having a 1,3-dioxan ring in their central core were synthesized. Enantioselective dehydrohalogenation using chiral alkoxides provided a simple and practical approach for their synthesis. Some structures exhibit both low melting point and liquid crystalline behaviour.     

Synthesis and properties of a diastereopure ionic liquid with planar chirality

An imidazolium-based ionic liquid with cyclophane-type planar chirality was synthesized in an optically pure form for the first time. The resultant ionic liquid existed as a liquid at room temperature (T_g = −35 °C), and was found to be applicable as an NMR chiral shift reagent for racemic anions. Excellent robustness of the ionic liquid to a highly elevated temperature (270 °C) was proved from the viewpoints of isomerization and thermal decomposition.     

Ion speciation driving chirality transfer in imidazolium-based camphorsulfonate ionic liquid solutions

The underlying principle of the chirality transfer in imidazolium-based camphorsulfonate ionic liquids is rationalized by linking catalytic results from the hydrogenation of [N-(3'-oxobutyl)-N-methylimidazolium] [(+)-camphorsulfonate] to [N-(3'-hydroxybutyl)-N-methylimidazolium] [(+)-camphorsulfonate] in tetrahydrofuran with electrolyte theory by the help of dielectric relaxation spectroscopy. Using this approach we are able to explain why the maximum of the enantiomeric excess of the hydrogenation reaction in tetrahydrofuran is found at a medium concentration of 0.15 mol L(-1), whereas it declines at both, lower and higher concentrations. Dielectric spectra in the concentration range between 0.05 and 1.0 mol L(-1) reveal a solute mode due to dipolar ion pairs and larger dipolar ion clusters. They verify that at very low concentrations the ionic liquid ions are fully solvated with an increasing tendency to form neutral ion pairs with increasing concentration. Already at 0.025 mol L(-1) the degree of dissociation reaches a minimum reflecting a maximum of neutral ion pair formation. With increasing ionic liquid concentration ordered ion clusters are formed by two and more ion pairs. At high concentrations these clusters collapse by dilution in the excess ionic liquid and the defined ion contact necessary for the chirality transfer is lost to a great extent.     

Design and synthesis of novel imidazolium-based ionic liquids with a pseudo crown-ether moiety: diastereomeric interaction of a racemic ionic liquid with enantiopure europium complexes

A planar-chiral imidazolium salt with a tris(oxoethylene) bridge was synthesized, and its potential application as a room temperature ionic liquid with a molecular-recognition ability was demonstrated.     

Synthesis and characterization of novel imidazolium-based ionic discotic liquid crystals with a triphenylene moiety

Two novel triphenylene-tethered imidazolium salts were synthesized either by the quaternization of 1-methylimidazole with an ω-bromo-substituted triphenylene or by the quaternization of a triphenylene-substituted imidazole with methyl iodide. Their chemical structures were determined by ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, IR, UV spectroscopy and elemental analysis. The thermotropic liquid crystalline properties of these salts were investigated by polarizing optical microscopy and differential scanning calorimetry. These triphenylene-based imidazolium salts with bromide or iodide as counterion show columnar mesophase properties over a wide temperature range.     

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.     

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.     

Thermotropic liquid crystal behaviour of gemini imidazolium-based ionic amphiphiles

Thermotropic ionic liquid crystals (LCs) are useful for a number of applications such as anisotropic ion transport and as organised reaction media/solvents because of their ordered fluid properties and intrinsic charge units. A large number of different ionic LC architectures are known, but only a handful of examples of gemini (i.e. paired or dimeric) ionic LCs have been prepared and studied. In this work, a series of 20 new symmetric, imidazolium-based, gemini cationic LCs containing two bridged imidazolium cations and two pendant alkyl chains was synthesised, and the thermotropic LC behaviours were characterised. The imidazolium unit provides a highly tunable and modular platform for the design and synthesis of gemini cationic LCs which offers excellent structure control. As expected, the thermotropic LC properties of these new amphilphilic, gemini ionic LCs were found to be strongly influenced by the length of the spacer between the imidazolium units, the length of the pendant alkyl tails, and the nature of the anion. Smectic A (SmA) thermotropic LC phases were observed in more than half of the gemini imidazolium LC systems studied.     

Synthesis and characterisation of imidazolium-based ionic liquid crystals bearing a cholesteryl mesogenic group

A series of cholesteryl-containing imidazolium chlorides and imidazolium tetrachloroaluminates were synthesised, and the chemical structure, liquid crystalline behaviour and ionic conductivity were characterised by several technical methods. Whereas the imidazolium chlorides show chiral smectic A (SmA*) phase on heating and cooling cycles, the imidazolium tetrachloroaluminates display chiral nematic (N*) phase, which is uncommon for ionic liquid crystals (ILCs). The imidazolium chlorides display similar phase transition temperature and entropy, indicating the cholesteryl component influence predominately on the phase transition rather than the different alkyl substituent groups. The imidazolium tetrachloroaluminates show lower melting point temperatures and lower clear point temperature than the imidazolium chlorides. The mesophases exist at rather moderate temperatures. Non-mesomorphic imidazolium tetrachloroaluminate(III) salts with short alkyl substituents have been known for a long time, and the synthesised imidazolium tetrachloroaluminates are the first examples of tetrahalogenoaluminate(III)-containing ILCs. For the imidazolium tetrachloroaluminates, imidazolium cations combine loosely with AlCl₄^? ions because AlCl₄^? ions are large and occupy more space in spite of the hydrogen bond and electrostatic attraction interaction, indicating that the layer structure can be destroyed easily to form N* phase on heating.     

Analysis of thermodynamic characteristics of imidazolium-based ionic liquid on coal

To investigate the effects of ionic liquids (ILs) on the oxidative combustion characteristics of coal, the oxidation characteristics of ILs on coal, such as characteristic temperature, thermal mass loss rate, and oxidation kinetics characteristic parameters, were determined. The results the [BMIm][I]-treated coal samples increased cracking temperature (T₁), maximum oxidization mass gain (T₂), ignition temperature (T₃), burnout temperature (T₄), minimum thermal rate (T_a), maximum thermal energy (T_b), and maximum thermal rate (T_c) by 33.2, 29.3, 20.7, 42.8, 11.4, 23.0, and 27.9 °C, respectively. The increase mass ratio of coal samples treated with ILs increased and decreased at the water evaporation and thermal decomposition stages, respectively. The apparent activation energy (E_a) of coal samples treated with ILs increased, and the mechanism function also changed accordingly. These showed that the ILs improved the thermal stability of the coal samples in the stages of absorbing oxygen and increased mass, and the loss of combustion. The ILs caused damage to the molecular structure of the coal and ultimately effected changes in the combustion performance. In addition, the [BMIm][BF₄] hardly weakens the inhibitory effectiveness of the coal sample over time; coal spontaneous combustion could be effectively inhibited.

     

Carbon dioxide capture by aminoalkyl imidazolium-based ionic liquid: a computational investigation

Efficient technologies/processes for CO(2) capture are greatly desired, and ionic liquids are recognized as promising materials for this purpose. However, the mechanisms for selectively capturing CO(2) by ionic liquids are unclear. In this study, the interactions between CO(2) and 1-n-amino-alkyl-3-methyl-imidazolium tetrafluoroborate, an amino imidazolium ionic liquid (AIIL), in its CO(2) capturing process, are elucidated with both quantum chemistry and molecular dynamics approaches on the molecular level. The effects of the straight aminoalkyl chain length in imidazolium-based cations on CO(2) capture are explored, and thereby the factors governing CO(2) capture for this ionic liquid family, e.g., ionic liquid structure, charge distribution, intermolecular interactions, thermodynamic properties and absorption kinetics, are analyzed. Molecular dynamics simulations are used to study the diffusion of the involved compounds and liquid structures of the CO(2)-AIIL systems. The results show that the amino-alkyl chain length plays an important role in governing the absorption properties of AIILs, including the free energies of absorption, equilibrium constants, desorption temperature, absorption rate constants, diffusion coefficients, and organization of CO(2) around cations and anions. This study provides useful information about rational design of ionic liquids for efficient CO(2) capture.     

Synthesis of highly stable silver nanoparticles using imidazolium-based ionic liquid

Highly stable, aqueous dispersions, and hydrophilic ionic liquid-capped silver nanoparticles with positive surface charge were synthesized by in situ reduction of AgNO₃ with NaBH₄ in the presence of an imidazolium-based ionic liquid, viz., 1-dodecyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([C₁₂mim][Cl]) at room temperature. Prepared silver nanoparticles were characterized by UV–vis spectra, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and zeta potential. UV–visible spectrum of the aqueous medium peaked at 407 nm corresponding to the plasmon absorbance of silver nanoparticles. TEM analysis revealed the spherical shape of the particles with sizes about 9 nm and low polydispersed. The surface charge of the synthesized silver nanoparticles was determined as +5.0 mV. The ionic liquid ([C₁₂mim][Cl]) capped silver nanoparticles were stable for at least 8 months.     

A novel united-atom force field for imidazolium-based ionic liquids

A novel united-atom (UA) force field is proposed from our previously developed all-atom (AA) force field for the imidazolium-based ionic liquids by the introduction of a coarse-grained method. The Lennard-Jones parameters for CH(2) and CH(3) in alkyls are fitted to match the AA force field, and the partial atomic charges are re-fitted by the one conformation two-step RESP method. The force field is verified by molecular dynamics simulations of pure ionic liquids and the mixture of [bmim][BF(4)] and acetonitrile. The densities, self-diffusion coefficients, vaporization enthalpies, cohesive energy densities, and microscopic structures of both the pure components and mixtures are simulated. The simulated results from the UA force field agree well with those from the AA force field. In addition, the predictive capability of the UA force field for the liquid densities of [C(n)mim][PF(6)] is tested. The UA force field proposed in this work provides a useful tool with good accuracy and much less computational intensity for future molecular design of ionic liquids.     

A novel and efficient ionic liquid supported synthesis of oligosaccharides

A novel and efficient ionic liquid supported synthesis of oligosaccharides with a general protocol of coupling and purification is described. The method represents an attractive alternative to the classical solid- and fluorous-phase synthesis strategies and combines the advantage of performing homogeneous chemistry on a relatively large scale while avoiding large excesses of reagents.     

Shape-controlled synthesis of silver crystals mediated by imidazolium-based ionic liquids

This work presents an approach toward the shape-controlled synthesis of Ag crystals with hierarchical structures by exploitation of ionic liquids (ILs) as a shape-regulating agent. The synthesis of Ag crystals involves the reduction of AgNO(3) by EG in the presence of ILs, specifically 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium methylsulfate (bmim-MeSO(4)). In accordance with non-classical crystallization growth mechanism, the primary Ag nanoparticles were formed at the early stage of the reaction, and then self-organized into 1D or 3D Ag superstructures via an IL-mediated self-assembly process. Their final morphologies were strongly dependent on the reaction conditions such as the concentration of ILs in the reaction mixture and the reaction temperature, which suggests that ILs play an important role in controlling the shape of the Ag crystals.     

Chemoenzymatic synthesis of optically active 1,2-disubstituted ferrocenes with planar chirality

A new pathway for the synthesis of 2-substituted ferrocenyl compounds with planar chirality using a chemoenzymatic resolution as the key step is described. The kinetic resolution of racemic 2-hydroxymethyl phenylthioferrocene 4 has been optimised and carried out on a multi-gram scale using CAL-B lipase, giving the resulting acetate and remaining alcohols in ee’s >99%. The enantiomerically enriched sulfides have been transformed via a two-step sequence, in a new family of 2-substituted ferrocenyl alcohol by using a sulfoxide–lithium exchange/electrophilic trapping sequence; this gives straightforward access to non-racemic ferrocenyl alcohols with planar chirality.     

Design and synthesis of novel chiral spiro ionic liquids

[reaction: see text] Novel chiral imidazolium salts have been synthesized as examples of chiral ionic liquids with a spiro skeleton. Effects of N-substituents and counteranions on the melting point of spiro imidazolium salts and their chiral discrimination abilities are described.     

Development of a novel ionic support and its application in the ionic liquid phase assisted synthesis of a potent antithrombotic

The synthesis of ionic support 1 and its application in the preparation of a set of amides and sulfonamides is described. The potential of 1 is further exemplified by its use in a one-pot multistep ionic liquid phase assisted synthesis of tirofiban analogue 2.