Solubility of CO2, CH4, C2H6, C2H4, O2, and N2 in 1-hexyl-3-methylpyridinium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide: comparison to other ionic liquids.

The solubilities of gases in ionic liquids are important in evaluating ionic liquids as solvents for reactions involving permanent gases, as gas storage media, and as solvents for gas separations. Gas solubilities are also important in developing methods to separate solutes from ionic liquid solutions. Here we describe our measurements of the solubilities of CO2, CH4, C2H 6, C2H 4, O2, and N2 in 1-hexyl-3-methylpyridinium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide and compare these results to our previous investigations. In addition, focus is placed on efforts to tailor ionic liquids to enhance the solubilities of some gases, with particular emphasis on carbon dioxide.

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.

Biodegradability of imidazolium and pyridinium ionic liquids by an activated sludge microbial community.

Ionic liquids (ILs) are novel organic salts that have enormous potential for industrial use as green replacements for harmful volatile organic solvents. Varying the cationic components can alter the chemical and physical properties of ILs, including solubility, to suit a variety of industrial processes. However, to complement designer engineering, it is crucial to proactively characterize the biological impacts of new chemicals, in order to fully define them as environmentally friendly. Before introduction of ILs into the environment, we performed an analysis of the biodegradability of six ILs by activated sludge microorganisms collected from the South Bend, Indiana wastewater treatment plant. We examined biodegradability of 1-butyl, 1-hexyl and 1-octyl derivatives of 3-methyl-imidazolium and 3-methyl-pyridinium bromide compounds using the standard Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development dissolved organic carbon Die-Away Test, changes in total dissolved nitrogen concentrations, and 1H-nuclear magnetic resonance analysis of initial and final chemical structures. Further, we examined microbial community profiles throughout the incubation period using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DNA-PCR-DGGE). Our results suggest that hexyl and octyl substituted pyridinium-based ILs can be fully mineralized, but that imidazolium-based ILs are only partially mineralized. Butyl substituted ILs with either cation, were not biodegradable. Biodegradation rates also increase with longer alkyl chain length, which may be related to enhanced selection of a microbial community. Finally, DGGE analysis suggests that certain microorganisms are enriched by ILs used as a carbon source. Based on these results, we suggest that further IL design and synthesis include pyridinium cations and longer alkyl substitutions for rapid biodegradability.

Measurement of SO2 solubility in ionic liquids.

Measurements of the solubility of sulfur dioxide (SO(2)) in the ionic liquids 1-n-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide ([hmim][Tf(2)N]) and 1-n-hexyl-3-methylpyridinium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide ([hmpy][Tf(2)N]) at temperatures from 25 to 60 degrees C and pressures up to 4 bar indicate that large amounts (up to 85 mol %) of SO(2) dissolve in ionic liquids by simple physical absorption.