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From Molecules to Materials: Engineering New Ionic Liquid Crystals Through Halogen Bonding
Published on: March 24, 2018
Using ionic liquids to trap unique coordination environments: polymorphic solvates of ErCl3(OH2)(4).2([C2mim]Cl)
C Corey Hines1, Violina A Cocalia, Robin D Rogers
1Department of Chemistry, Center for Green Manufacturing, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA.
Chemical Communications (Cambridge, England)
|December 20, 2007
Summary
Ionic liquids enable the isolation of unique solid-state coordination environments. Researchers successfully trapped unusual erbium chloride coordination complexes by controlling solution conditions.
Area of Science:
- Inorganic Chemistry
- Materials Science
- Coordination Chemistry
Background:
- Ionic liquids offer unique solvent properties for crystallization.
- Controlling solution chemistry can influence solid-state structures.
- Erbium chloride exhibits diverse coordination behavior.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the use of ionic liquids for isolating novel coordination compounds.
- To explore the effect of solution additives on crystal formation.
- To trap unusual coordination geometries of erbium.
Main Methods:
- Crystallization from ionic liquid solutions.
- Addition of aqueous hydrochloric acid (HCl(aq)) as a variable.
- Isolation and characterization of solid-state solvates.
Main Results:
- Two polymorphs of ErCl(3)(OH(2))(4).2([C(2)mim]Cl) solvates were isolated with HCl addition.
- The [C(2)mim](3)[ErCl(6)] complex was isolated without HCl addition.
- Demonstration of ionic liquids controlling solid-state coordination environments.
Conclusions:
- Ionic liquids are effective in trapping unusual coordination geometries.
- Solution chemistry, specifically HCl concentration, dictates the resulting solid-state structure.
- This work highlights the versatility of ionic liquids in synthetic inorganic chemistry.
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