We present a computational analysis of the short-range structure of three protic ionic liquids based on strong organic acids: trifluoracetate, methanesulfonate, and triflate of triethylammonium. Accurate ab initio computations carried out on the gas-phase dimers show that the protonation of triethylamine is spontaneous. We have identified the anion-cation binding motif that is due to the presence of a strong hydrogen bond and to electrostatic interactions. The strength of the hydrogen bond and the magnitude of the binding energy decrease in the order trifluoroacetate ≳ methanesulfonate > triflate. The corresponding simulations of the bulk phases, obtained using a semiempirical evaluation of the interatomic forces, reveal that on short timescales, the state of the three liquids remains highly ionized and that the gas-phase cation-/anion-binding motif is preserved while no other peculiar structural features seem to emerge.

Assessing the structure of protic ionic liquids based on triethylammonium and organic acid anions / Bodo, E.; Bonomo, M.; Mariani, A.. - In: JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY. B, CONDENSED MATTER, MATERIALS, SURFACES, INTERFACES & BIOPHYSICAL. - ISSN 1520-6106. - 125:10(2021), pp. 2781-2792. [10.1021/acs.jpcb.1c00249]

Assessing the structure of protic ionic liquids based on triethylammonium and organic acid anions

Mariani A.
2021-01-01

Abstract

We present a computational analysis of the short-range structure of three protic ionic liquids based on strong organic acids: trifluoracetate, methanesulfonate, and triflate of triethylammonium. Accurate ab initio computations carried out on the gas-phase dimers show that the protonation of triethylamine is spontaneous. We have identified the anion-cation binding motif that is due to the presence of a strong hydrogen bond and to electrostatic interactions. The strength of the hydrogen bond and the magnitude of the binding energy decrease in the order trifluoroacetate ≳ methanesulfonate > triflate. The corresponding simulations of the bulk phases, obtained using a semiempirical evaluation of the interatomic forces, reveal that on short timescales, the state of the three liquids remains highly ionized and that the gas-phase cation-/anion-binding motif is preserved while no other peculiar structural features seem to emerge.
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11566/300163
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