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Updated: Aug 19, 2026

From Molecules to Materials: Engineering New Ionic Liquid Crystals Through Halogen Bonding
Published on: March 24, 2018
The 2-position of imidazolium ionic liquids: substitution and exchange
Scott T Handy1, Maurice Okello
1Department of Chemistry, State University of New York at Binghamton, Binghamton, New York 13902, USA. shandy@binghamton.edu
Abstract:
The 2-position of imidazolium cations is known to be relatively acidic, leading to the useful Arduengo-type carbenes. At the same time, the acidity of this site can lead to undesired side reactions when using imidazolium-based ionic liquids as solvents. In this note, we describe the surprisingly facile deuterium exchange at this position and also the synthesis and exchange under modestly basic conditions (triethylamine) of a series of 2-methyl-substituted compounds.
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