The distillation and volatility of ionic liquids

Martyn J. Earle, José M.S.S. Esperança, Manuela A. Gilea, José N. Canongia Lopes, Luís P.N. Rebelo (), Joseph W. Magee, Kenneth R. Seddon and Jason A. Widegren
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Martyn J. Earle: The Queen's University of Belfast
José M.S.S. Esperança: Universidade Nova de Lisboa
Manuela A. Gilea: The Queen's University of Belfast
José N. Canongia Lopes: Universidade Nova de Lisboa
Luís P.N. Rebelo: Universidade Nova de Lisboa
Joseph W. Magee: National Institute of Standards and Technology
Kenneth R. Seddon: The Queen's University of Belfast
Jason A. Widegren: National Institute of Standards and Technology

Nature, 2006, vol. 439, issue 7078, 831-834

Abstract: Distilling the undistillable Interest in ionic liquids has grown in line with their use as solvents in ‘green’ chemistry, which aims to avoid the use or production of hazardous substances during chemical processes. Ionic liquids are salts that are liquid at or close to room temperature. It has been widely assumed — but not proven — that they will decompose before they boil, so they are generally considered undistillable, and hence very difficult to purify. This now turns out to be incorrect: at low pressures and moderate temperatures, certain classes of ionic liquids have now been distilled without decomposition. As well as the intrinsic importance of this observation, it serves as a reminder that a ‘widely held assumption’ does not constitute proof: always obtain experimental verification.

Date: 2006
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DOI: 10.1038/nature04451

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