DESIGNER SOLVENTS: Ionic liquids may boost clean technology development

Abstract

Ionic systems consisting of salts that are liquid at ambient temperatures can act as solvents for a broad spectrum of chemical processes.These ionic liquids,which in some cases can serve as both catalyst and solvent,are attracting increasing attention from industry because they promise significant environmental benefits,according to British and French researchers. "Probably the most important advantage is that they have no measurable vapor pressure," says chemistry professor Kenneth R.Seddon who leads a group of 18 researchers working on ionic liquids at Queen's University of Belfast, Northern Ireland. "Unlike conventional solvents used in the industrial syntheses of organic chemicals, they are nonvolatile and therefore do not emit vapors." Paul T. Anastas,chief of the industrial chemistry branch at the Environmental Protection Agency, Washington D.C.,is convinced that ionic liquids can contribute significantly to green chemistry and the development of clean technology. "Green chemistry aims to design the hazards out ...