On the Influence of the Menthol Moiety on the Transport Properties of a Homologue Series of Functionalized Bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide Room-Temperature Ionic Liquids: A Quest for the Structure-Property Relationship

This study explores the transport properties of bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide-based ionic liquids with a naturally derived (1R,2S,5R)-(-)-menthol moiety in the cationic part. In particular, we investigated the dependence of the dynamic viscosity and electrical conductivity as functions of the alkyl chain length. An important finding of this study is that both properties show nonmonotonic behavior with respect to the alkyl chain length. The nonmonotonic dependency is an obstacle for establishing the relationships between the structure and transport properties of homologues. To overcome this difficulty, we recommend fast property screening using a theoretical model that we developed, which allows for efficient viscosity prediction by means of the group contribution method. As demonstrated in this study, the model allows for reliable predictions of viscosity in the studied series with an overall relative deviation of less than 8%.

Enzyme-Inspired Assembly: Incorporating Multivariate Interactions to Optimize the Host-Guest Configuration for High-Speed Enantioselective Catalysis

To achieve a rapid asymmetry conversion, the substrate objects suffer from accelerated kinetic velocity and random rotation at the cost of selectivity. Inspired by natural enzymes, optimizing the host-guest configuration will realize the high-performance enantioselective conversion of chemical reactions. Herein, multivariate binding interactions were introduced into the 1D channel of a chiral catalyst to simulate the enzymatic action. An imidazolium group was used to electrophilically activate the C═O unit of a ketone substrate, and the counterion binds the hydrogen donor isopropanol. This binding effect around the catalytic center produces strong stereo-induction, resulting in high conversion (99.5% yield) and enantioselectivity (99.5% ee) for the asymmetric hydrogenation of biomass-derived acetophenone. In addition, the turnover frequency of the resulting catalyst (5160 h^-1 TOF) is more than 58 times that of a homogeneous Ru-TsDPEN catalyst (88 h^-1 TOF) under the same condition, which corresponds to the best performance reported till date among all existing catalysts for the considered reaction.

Tetrabutylphosphonium 4-ethoxyvalerate as a biomass-originated media for homogeneous palladium-catalyzed Hiyama coupling reactions

The introduction of a biomass-derived ionic liquid into the Hiyama coupling reactions, which has been considered as a powerful tool for the synthesis of symmetrically and non-symmetrically substituted biaryl structures, could further control or even reduce the environmental impact of this transformation. It was shown that tetrabutylphosphonium 4-ethoxyvalerate, a γ-valerolactone-based ionic liquid, can be utilized as an alternative solvent to create carbon–carbon bonds between aryl iodides and functionalized organosilanes in the presence of 1 mol% Pd under typical Hiyama conditions (130 °C, 24 h, tetrabutylammonium fluoride activator). A comparison of different ionic liquids was performed, and the effects of the catalyst precursor and the moisture content of the reaction mixture on the activity of the catalyst system were investigated. The functional group tolerance was also studied, resulting in 15 cross-coupling products (3a–o) with isolated yields of 45–72% and excellent purity (> 98%).

Properties of Novel Polyesters Made from Renewable 1,4-Pentanediol

Novel polyester polyols were prepared in high yields from biobased 1,4-pentanediol catalyzed by non-toxic phosphoric acid without using a solvent. These oligomers are terminated with hydroxyl groups and have low residual acid content, making them suitable for use in adhesives by polyurethane formation. The thermal behavior of the polyols was studied by differential scanning calorimetry, and tensile testing was performed on the derived polyurethanes. The results were compared with those of polyurethanes obtained with fossil-based 1,4-butanediol polyester polyols. Surprisingly, it was found that a crystalline polyester was obtained when aliphatic long-chain diacids (>C12 ) were used as the diacid building block. The low melting point of the C12 diacid-based material allows the development of biobased shape-memory polymers with very low switching temperatures (<0 °C), an effect that has not yet been reported for a material based on a simple binary polyester. This might find application as thermosensitive adhesives in the packaging of temperature-sensitive goods such as pharmaceuticals. Furthermore, these results indicate that, although 1,4-pentanediol cannot be regarded as a direct substitute for 1,4-butanediol, its novel structure expands the toolbox of the adhesives, coatings, or sealants formulators.

Regioselective Hydrogenation of Itaconic Acid to γ-Isovalerolactone by Transition-Metal Nanoparticle Catalysts

Current methods for hydrogenation of bio-derived itaconic acid (IA) lead to a mixture of isomeric lactone products. Transition-metal nanoparticles (TM-NPs), in situ-generated through thermolysis of TM(0) (Ru, Fe, W, Cr) carbonyls, in particular Ru-NPs, were found to catalyze regioselective hydrogenation of IA by syngas (2 H₂ /CO) into γ-isovalerolactone (GiVL) in approximately 70 % isolated yield. Key sustainability features of this new route include: a one-pot direct transformation of bio-renewable IA into value-added GiVL selectively, use of inexpensive and renewable syngas in aqueous solution, and development of a supported recyclable NP catalyst system, Al₂ O₃ -Ru-NPs.

Ruthenium-catalyzed solvent-free conversion of furfural to furfuryl alcohol

Bidentate phosphine-modified Ru-based homogeneous catalyst systems were developed for any solvent-free conversion of furfural to furfuryl alcohol as a versatile biomass-based C₅-platform molecule.

Recyclable Earth-Abundant Metal Nanoparticle Catalysts for Selective Transfer Hydrogenation of Levulinic Acid to Produce γ-Valerolactone

Nanoparticles (NPs) derived from earth-abundant metal(0) carbonyls catalyze conversion of bio-derived levulinic acid into γ-valerolactone in up to 93% isolated yield. This sustainable and green route uses non-precious metal catalysts and can be performed in aqueous or ethanol solution without using hydrogen gas as the hydrogen source. Generation of metal NPs using microwave irradiation greatly enhances the rate of the conversion, enables the use of ethanol as both solvent and hydrogen source without forming the undesired ethyl levulinate, and affords recyclable polymer-stabilized NPs.

New biobased tetrabutylphosphonium ionic liquids: synthesis, characterization and use as a solvent or co-solvent for mild and greener Pd-catalyzed hydrogenation processes

Phosphonium-based ionic liquids with natural organic derived anions were easily prepared and showed good performance and recyclability in Pd-catalyzed hydrogenation processes at room temperature under atmospheric H₂ pressure.