Orientational Dynamics of Room Temperature Ionic Liquid/Water Mixtures: Water-Induced Structure

Influence of the molecular-oriented structure of ionic liquids on the crystallinity of aluminum hydroxide prepared by a sol-gel process in ionic liquids

The influence of the structure of ionic liquids on the crystallinity of aluminum hydroxide (Al(OH)3) prepared by a sol-gel process with aluminum isopropoxide (Al(OPr(i))3) in imidazolium-based ionic liquids was investigated. When Al(OH)3 was prepared in ionic liquids having long alkyl chains, such as 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium salts and 1-methyl-3-octylimidazolium salts, highly crystalline products were obtained. In contrast, Al(OH)3 obtained using the 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium salt was an amorphous material, indicating that hydrophobic interaction of the alkyl tail of the imidazolium cation of the ionic liquid strongly affects the crystallinity of sol-gel products and the local structure of the ionic liquid. Moreover, the crystallinity of Al(OH)3 prepared in ionic liquids increased relative to the amount of additional water (ionic liquid/water = 1.28/2.0-3.5/0.2, w/w). In the case of addition of a small amount of water (ionic liquid/water = 3.5/0.2, w/w), the product was amorphous. These results implied that the presence of an ionic liquid and a sufficient amount of water was crucial for the successful synthesis of sol-gel products with high crystallinity. (1)H NMR analyses revealed a shift of the peak associated with the imidazolium cation upon addition of water, which suggested that the molecular orientation of the ionic liquid was similar to that of a micelle.

Water Dynamics in Metal-Organic Frameworks: Effects of Heterogeneous Confinement Predicted by Computational Spectroscopy

The behavior of water confined in MIL-53(Cr), a flexible metal-organic framework (MOF), is investigated through computational infrared spectroscopy. As the number of molecules adsorbed inside of the pores increases, the water OH stretch band of the linear infrared spectrum grows in intensity and approaches that of bulk water. To assess whether the water confined in MIL-53(Cr) becomes liquid-like, two-dimensional infrared spectra (2DIR) are also calculated. Confinement effects result in distinct chemical environments that appear as specific features in the 2DIR spectra. The evolution of the 2DIR line shape as a function of waiting time is well described in terms of the orientational dynamics of the water molecules, with chemical exchange cross peaks appearing at a time scale similar to the hydrogen bond rearrangement lifetime. The confining environment considerably slows the hydrogen bond dynamics relative to bulk as a result of the competition between water-framework and water-water interactions.

Molecular dynamics investigation of the vibrational spectroscopy of isolated water in an ionic liquid

Experimental studies examining the structure and dynamics of water in ionic liquids (ILs) have revealed local ion rearrangements that occur an order of magnitude faster than complete randomization of the liquid structure. Simulations of an isolated water molecule embedded in 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium hexafluorophosphate, [bmim][PF6], were performed to shed insight into the nature of these coupled water-ion dynamics. The theoretical calculations of the spectral diffusion dynamics and the infrared absorption spectra of the OD stretch of isolated HOD in [bmim][PF6] agree well with experiment. The infrared absorption line shape of the OD stretch is narrower and blue-shifted in the IL compared to those in aqueous solution. Decomposition of the OD frequency time correlation function revealed that translational motions of the anions dominate the spectral diffusion dynamics.

High-Field EPR Spectroscopic Characterization of Spin Probes in Aqueous Ionic Liquid Mixtures

Binary mixtures of the hydrophilic room temperature ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate ([bmim+][BF4 -]) and water have been probed using high-field/high-frequency electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. By adding nitroxide radicals as paramagnetic tracers, the solution structure could be assessed from typical solutes' points of view. Three probe molecules, differing in charge and hydrogen bonding affinity, have been employed: the dianionic Fremy's salt, amphiphilic TEMPO, and hydrophilic TEMPOL. High-field pulse EPR spectroscopy has been used to determine hyperfine interaction tensors and g-matrices under cryogenic conditions. Polarity-proticity plots reveal the interaction of the nitroxide moiety with apolar (TEMPO) and ionic (FS) nano-domains, depending on the probe structure. Only small variations are observed on changing the water content suggesting that the probes are well shielded from aqueous subdomains. The results indicate that addition of water in fact stabilizes IL-rich mesostructures by embedding them in pools of water.