The Possibility to Obtain a New Generation of Ionic Liquids Starting From Natural Compounds

Abstract

Room temperature ionic liquids (ILs) have attracted considerable attention as novel reaction media over the last decade. By virtue of their unique properties, ILs have been proposed as alternative solvents. Struc- turally, most of the ILs that have been investigated to date are based on imidazolium, pyridinium and ammonium cations, associated with polyatomic anions such as chloroaluminates, tetrafluoroborate, hexafluorophoshate and bis-triflimide. Although these salts have positive properties, imidazole, pyridine and halogenoalkanes come from petroleum feedstocks that are neither green nor sustainable. Renewable resources may represent a valid alternative to synthesized new ILs; an alternative able to take into accounts both the ecological and economic requirements.