Potential Environmental Impact of Imidazolium Ionic Liquids

摘要

Excellent, non-volatile solvents for a wide range of applications, and claimed to be environmentally benign, room temperature ionic liquids are generating increasing interest for their potential in different chemical processes However, the production, application and waste management of ionic liquids will inevitably lead to their accidental discharge into the environment. Therefore, responsible product design should always take into consideration not only technological demands but also the possible health and environmental hazards. This chapter includes data on the photodegradation rates of ionic liquids as well as their sorption to different types of soil and marine sediment. It outlines the toxicological screening of ionic liquids using algae, which takes environmental parameters such as salinity into account, and discusses the theoretical prediction and experimental determination of lipophilicity and possible metabolic pathways. The data presented here provide a preliminary insight into the prospective presence of ionic liquids in the environment.