Chain-length dependent organisation in mixtures of hydrogenous and fluorous ionic liquids

Naomi Sarah Elstone, Emily Shaw, Karina Shimizu*, Joshua Lai, Bruno Demé, Paul Lane, Matthew L. Costen, Kenneth G. McKendrick, Sarah Youngs, Sarah E. Rogers, Jose Nuno Canongia Lopes, Duncan Watson Bruce*, John Martin Slattery*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

As part of an ongoing study of the structure and properties of mixtures of ionic liquids in which one component has a hydrocarbon chain and the other a semiperfluorocarbon chain, we now report a study of the mixtures [C8MIM]1-x[C10MIM-F17]x[Tf2N], [C10MIM]1-x[C8MIM-F13]x[Tf2N] and [C10MIM]1-x[C10MIM-F17]x[Tf2N], where [C8MIM][Tf2N] is 1-methyl-3-octylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide, [C10MIM][Tf2N] is 1-decyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide, [C8MIM-F13][Tf2N] is 1-(1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorooctyl)-3-methylimidizolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide and [C10MIM-F17][Tf2N] is 1-(1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorodecyl)-3-methylimidizolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide. The mixtures were investigated using small-angle X-ray (SAXS) and neutron (SANS) scattering complemented by molecular dynamics simulations (with viscosity and surface tension measurements also possible for the mixtures [C10MIM]1-x[C8MIM-F13]x[Tf2N]). Unlike previous studies of [C8MIM]1-x[C8MIM-F13]x[Tf2N], where no strong evidence of alkyl/fluoroalkyl chain segregation or triphilic behaviour was seen (Elstone et al., J. Phys. Chem. B, 2023, 127, 7394-7407), these new mixtures showed the formation of small aggregates of varying sizes of each component, even though all were co-miscible across the full range of compositions. Thus, while a clear polar non-polar peak (PNPP) was observed at large or small values of x, at intermediate compositions the small-angle neutron scattering at low q was dominated by scattering from these small aggregates, with little or no evidence of the PNPP at some compositions. The origins of this behaviour are discussed in terms of inter-chain interactions.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)55-78
JournalFARADAY DISCUSSIONS
Volume253
DOIs
Publication statusAccepted/In press - 5 Apr 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

Keywords

  • Ionic liquids
  • liquid structure
  • fluorous chemistry
  • SILP catalysis

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