Experimental study of the adsorption of an ionic liquid onto bacterial and mineral surfaces

Ionic liquids are being developed as a replacement for volatile organic solvents in a range of industrial applications. These liquids have a vanishingly small vapor pressure, making them an attractive alternative to the volatile organic solvents. However, a thorough assessment of the environmental impact of the use of ionic liquids requires a more complete understanding of their fate and transport in environmental systems. Toward this end, we measured the adsorption of the ionic liquid 1-butyl, 3-methylimidazolium chloride (Bmim CI) onto a range of surfaces meant to represent those commonly found in the near-surface environment. We measured adsorption onto the Gram-positive soil bacterial species Bacillus subtilis, onto gibbsite, onto quartz, and onto Na-montmorillonite. We conducted experiments as a function of pH, solid:solute ratio, time, and ionic strength. The experimental results reveal that Bmim CI is unstable in water below pH 6 and above pH 10 and that it exhibits pH independent and ionic strength dependent adsorption onto Na-montmorillonite with 0.4, 0.8, 1.0, 1.2, and 2.0 g/L of clay. We observed no adsorption of the Bmim CI onto B. subtilis (3.95 or 7.91 g (dry weight) bacteria/L) at pH 5.5-8.5 or onto gibbsite (500 or 1285 g/L) or quartz (1000 and 2000 g/L) over the pH range 6-10. Calculated distribution coefficient (KD) values for Bmim CI onto the Na-montmorillonite change as a function of ionic strength; the 10(-4) M ionic strength KD value is 1735 +/- 269 L/Kg, and the 10(-1) M ionic strength KD is 1133 +/- 291 L/Kg. Our results suggest that the geologic retardation of this class of ionic liquid, if present as a dissolved contaminant in the subsurface, would be significant when a significant fraction of interlayer clays are present. However, adsorption onto other common geologic and biological surfaces is likely to be minimal, and the ionic liquids may travel unimpeded in groundwater systems in which these types of surfaces dominate.