Basicity Characterization of Imidazolyl Ionic Liquids and Their Application for Biomass Dissolution

Abstract

Alkalinity determination is of crucial significance for the applications of basic ionic liquids with imidazolyl. In this work, the ionization constant pKb value and acid function H- values of ionic liquids synthesized were calculated by pH method and UV spectrum-Hammett method. The dissolution ratio of biomass in these ionic liquids was measured at different temperatures. Finally, the relationship between the alkalinity and structure of these ionic liquids was discussed, and the relationship between the alkalinity of ionic liquid and the dissolution mechanism biomass was also discussed. The results show that the basicity of carboxylate ionic liquids is determined mainly by their anions, whereas cations take some finely tuned roles. Furthermore, cations and anions are equally important and are involved in dissolution mechanisms.