1,3-Disubstituted imidazolium hydroxides: Dry salts or wet carbenes?

Basic ionic liquids for catalysis: the road to greater stability

Homogeneous and heterogenized basic ionic liquids as reaction catalysts have been highlighted, particularly where they are used to promote reactions that could form the basis of more sustainable energy and chemical production.

One-pot synthesis of symmetric imidazolium ionic liquids N,N-disubstituted with long alkyl chains

The Debus–Radziszewski imidazole synthesis was adapted to directly yield long-chain imidazolium ionic liquids. Imidazolium acetate ionic liquids with side-chains up to sixteen carbon atoms were synthesised in excellent yields via an on-water, one-pot reaction. The imidazolium acetate ILs acted as surfactants when dissolved in various solvents. The imidazolium acetate ionic liquids were also derivatised via an acid metathesis to the chloride, nitrate, and hydrogen oxalate derivatives. The thermal behaviour of all the ionic liquids was determined via thermogravimetric and calorimetric analysis.

The modified Debus–Radziszewski reaction was used as a one-pot on-water reaction to allow a greener synthesis of long-chain 1,3-dialkylimidazolium acetate ionic liquids in high yield from long-chain linear amines.

Azolate Anions in Ionic Liquids: Promising and Under-Utilized Components of the Ionic Liquid Toolbox

Owing to their ease of synthesis, diffuse positive charge, and chemical stability, 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium cations (i.e., [C_n mim]⁺ ) are one of the most routinely utilized and historically important components in ionic liquid (IL) chemistry. However, while this is a routinely encountered member of the IL family as cations, relatively few workers have explored the versatile chemistry of azoles to allow their use as an anionic component in ILs, as azolates. Azolate anions possess many of the desired properties for IL formation, including a diffuse ionic charge, tailorable asymmetry, and synthetic flexibility, with the added advantages of not relying on halogen atoms for electron-withdrawing effects, as is commonly encountered with IL anions such as hexafluorophosphate. This review explores the 122 azolate-containing ILs known in the literature (prepared from only 39 disparate azolate anions), with a view to highlighting not only their demonstrated utility as an IL component, but the ways in which the larger scientific community may utilize their advantageous properties for new tailored materials.

NHC in Imidazolium Acetate Ionic Liquids: Actual or Potential Presence?

Ionic liquids (ILs) are considered in the majority of cases green solvents, due to their virtually null vapor pressure and to the easiness in recycling them. In particular, imidazolium ILs are widely used in many fields of Chemistry, as solvents or precursors of N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs). The latter are easily obtained by deprotonation of the C2-H, usually using strong bases or cathodic reduction. Nevertheless, it is known that weaker bases (e.g., triethylamine) are able to promote C2-H/D exchange. From this perspective, the possibility of deprotonating C2-H group of an imidazolium cation by means of a basic counter-ion was seriously considered and led to the synthesis of imidazolium ILs spontaneously containing NHCs. The most famous of this class of ILs are N,N'-disubstituted imidazolium acetates. Due to the particular reactivity of this kind of ILs, they were appointed as “organocatalytic ionic liquids” or “proto-carbenes.” Many papers report the use of these imidazolium acetates in organocatalytic reactions (i. e., catalyzed by NHC) or in stoichiometric NHC reactions (e.g., with elemental sulfur to yield the corresponding imidazole-2-thiones). Nevertheless, the actual presence of NHC in N,N'-disubstituted imidazolium acetate is still controversial. Moreover, theoretical studies seem to rule out the presence of NHC in such a polar environment as an IL. Aim of this Mini Review is to give the reader an up-to-date overview on the actual or potential presence of NHC in such an “organocatalytic ionic liquid,” both from the experimental and theoretical point of view, without the intent to be exhaustive on N,N'-disubstituted imidazolium acetate applications.

Exploring the cellular uptake and localisation of phosphorescent rhenium fac-tricarbonyl metallosurfactants as a function of lipophilicity

The cellular distribution of amphiphilic rhenium(i) complexes is tuned by the nature of the axial donor.

1-Ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tartrate chiral ionic liquids: preparation, characterization and opportunities thereof

Eight tartrate-based imidazolium salts were obtained as synthetically useful chiral ionic liquids with chirality-dependent physico-chemical properties.

[bmim]PF6/KOH: A Recyclable Catalytic System for an Azide–Arylacetaldehyde [3 + 2] Cycloaddition

A fast and green protocol for the synthesis of 1,4-disubstituted 1,2,3-triazoles from azides and arylacetaldehydes at room temperature was developed using [bmim]PF6/KOH as the reaction medium. It was found that the in situ-generated carbene from [bmim]PF6/KOH acted as the catalyst. In the absence of a transition-metal catalyst and organic solvent, this azide–arylacetaldehyde [3 + 2] cycloaddition proceeds efficiently, with high levels of regioselectivity, broad range of substrates, excellent yields and simple operation under mild conditions.

Masked N-Heterocyclic Carbene-Catalyzed Alkylation of Phenols with Organic Carbonates

An easily prepared masked N-heterocyclic carbene, 1,3-dimethylimidazolium-2-carboxylate (DMI-CO2 ), was investigated as a "green" and inexpensive organocatalyst for the alkylation of phenols. The process made use of various low-toxicity and renewable alkylating agents, such as dimethyl- and diethyl carbonate, in a focused microwave reactor. DMI-CO2 was found to be a very active catalyst and excellent yields of a range of aryl alkyl ethers were obtained under relatively benign conditions. The observed difference in the conversion behavior of phenol methylation, in the presence of either the carbene or 1,8-diazabicycloundec-7-ene (DBU) catalyst, was rationalized on the basis of mechanistic investigations. The primary mode of action for the N-heterocyclic carbene is nucleophilic catalysis. Activation of the dialkyl carbonate electrophile results in concomitant evolution of an organo-soluble alkoxide, which deprotonates the phenolic starting material. In contrast, DBU is initially protonated by the phenol and thus consumed. Subsequent regeneration and participation in nucleophilic catalysis only becomes significant after some phenolate alkylation occurs.

Hydroxyl-Exchanged Nanoporous Ionic Copolymer toward Low-Temperature Cycloaddition of Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide into Carbonates

An ionic copolymer catalyst with nanopores, large surface area, high ionic density, and superior basicity was prepared via the radical copolymerization of amino-functionalized ionic liquid bromide and divinylbenzene, followed with a hydroxyl exchange for removing bromonium. Evaluated in chemical fixation of CO2 with epoxides into cyclic carbonates in the absence of any solvent and basic additive, the nanoporous copolymer catalyst showed high and stable activity, superior to various control catalysts including the halogen-containing analogue. Further, high yields were obtained over a wide scope of substrates including aliphatic long carbon-chain alkyl epoxides and internal epoxide, even under atmospheric pressure and less than 100 °C for the majority of the substrates. On the basis of in situ Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) investigation and density functional theory (DFT) calculation for the reaction intermediates, we proposed a possible reaction mechanism accounting for the superior catalytic activity of the ionic copolymer. The specifically prepared ionic copolymer material of this work features highly stable, noncorrosive, and sustainable catalysis and, thus, may be a new possibility for efficient chemical fixation of CO2 since it is an environmentally friendly, metal-free solid catalyst.

A novel phenolic ionic liquid for 1.5 molar CO2 capture: combined experimental and DFT studies

A phenolic ionic liquid (IL) is introduced for carbon dioxide capture with 50% improvement on the absorption capacity compared to the current reported values for phenolic ILs.

Peralkylated imidazolium carbonate ionic liquids: synthesis using dimethyl carbonate, reactivity and structure

Tri- and tetra-alkylimidazoles are quaternised into their corresponding ionic liquids with dimethyl carbonate.

Carbenes from ionic liquids

In the last decade an explosive development has been observed in the fields of both ionic liquids (ILs) as potential chemically inert solvents with many possible technical applications, and N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) as catalysts with superb performance. Since the cations of many ILs can be deprotonated by strong bases yielding NHCs, this two fields are inherently connected. It has only recently been recognized that some of the commonly used basic anions of the ILs (such as acetate) are able to deprotonate azolium cations. While the resulting NHC could clearly be observed in the vapor phase, in the liquid - where the mutual electrostatic interactions within the ion network stabilize the ion pairs - the neutral NHC cannot be detected by commonly used analytical techniques; however, from these ionic liquids NHCs can be trapped, e.g., by complex formation, or more importantly these ILs can be directly used as catalysts, since the NHC content is sufficiently large for these applications. Apart from imidazole-2-ylidenes, the formation of other highly reactive neutral species ("abnormal carbenes," 2-alkylideneimidazoles, pyridine-ylidenes or pyridinium-ylides) is feasible in highly basic ionic liquids. The cross-fertilizing overlap between the two fields may provide access to a great advance in both areas, and we give an overview here on the results published so far, and also on the remaining possibilities and challenges in the concept of "carbenes from ionic liquids."