1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride: Ionic Liquid

1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride is a typical imidazolium-based ionic liquid. It is typically synthesised by quaternisation of 1-methylimidazole with 1-chlorobutane, and the product is purified through steps such as washing, drying and recrystallisation. BMIMCl possesses excellent thermal stability (flash point 192°C), superior electrical conductivity and strong solubility. As a fundamental member of the ionic liquid family, 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride is frequently used as a precursor for the preparation of other functionalised ionic liquids. Its most significant application is the efficient dissolution of cellulose, providing a new approach to the environmentally friendly processing of cellulose-based materials.

1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium Chloride Affects Anaerobic Digestion

Ionic liquids (ILs), a large class of salts with negligible vapor pressures, high thermal, and brilliant solvation potential in both water and lipids (amphiphilic), have been considered the next generation “environmentally benign” solvents and widely used in various industrial processes such as cellulose processing, electrolytes in batteries and supercapacitors, corrosion protection, and even sludge demetallization and dehydration. Several efforts have been made to assess the toxicity of ILs to model organisms such as fungi, bacteria, crustaceans, algae, plants, and mammalian cell lines. For instance, previous research showed that ILs were amphiphilic and could incorporate into cellular membranes, resulting in decreased membrane stability and ultimately disruption of membranes. The main purposes of this study are therefore to explore whether and how ILs affect anaerobic syntrophic consortia. As 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride (BmimCl) and glucose are widely used in lignocellulose pretreatment and bioassay for anaerobic toxicity, respectively, they are selected as the model ILs and digestion substrate in this study, respectively. First, to reveal the response of carbon flows in anaerobic digestion to 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride, methane production and the specific degradations of key intermediates from syntrophic consortia driven anaerobic digestion with BmimCl addition were compared. Then, the toxicological mechanism of BmimCl to anaerobes was explored from the aspects of extracellular polymeric substances (EPSs) and cell membrane. Finally, the microbial diversity and structure and ecological interactions of the microbial community responding to 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride were elucidated. This study updates the understanding of ILs’ impact on anaerobic syntrophic consortia, and the findings obtained might be helpful for designing “Green ILs”.[1]

In this study, the effect of BmimCl at environmentally relevant levels on glucose anaerobic digestion was therefore investigated in several laboratory-scale mesophilic anaerobic digesters to provide such support. Experimental results showed that 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride at 1–20 mg/L inhibited the methane production rate by 3.50–31.03%, and 20 mg/L BmimCl inhibited butyrate, hydrogen, and acetate biotransformation by 14.29%, 36.36%, and 11.57%, respectively. Toxicological mechanism studies revealed that extracellular polymeric substances (EPSs) adsorbed and accumulated BmimCl through carboxyl, amino, and hydroxyl groups, which destroyed the EPSs’ conformational structure, thereby leading to the inactivation of microbial cells. MiSeq sequencing data indicated that the abundance of Clostridium_sensu_stricto_1, Bacteroides, and Methanothrix decreased by 6.01%, 7.02%, and 18.45%, respectively, in response to 20 mg/L 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride. Molecular ecological network analysis showed that compared with the control, the lower network complexity, fewer keystone taxa, and fewer associations among microbial taxa were found in the BmimCl-present digester, indicating the reduced stability of the microbial community.

1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ionic liquid as high-performance electrolyte

While numerous studies have explored various ILs, there is still a lack of comprehensive evaluations on the long-term stability and performance of specific ILs, such as 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([BMIM]Cl), under varying operational conditions. Recent advances in 2D nanomaterials, such as graphene and MXenes, have enabled flexible and wearable SCs with high capacitance and stability, owing to their large surface area and tunable surface chemistry. This study aims to address these gaps by systematically investigating the physicochemical and electrochemical properties of [BMIM]Cl as an electrolyte in SCs across a range of temperatures. By demonstrating the viability of 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride under operational stress, this research contributes to the development of more sustainable and effective energy storage solutions. The high cost of SCs' electrolytes and raw materials is the main obstacle to their commercialization. Numerous investigations have been studied in this field to produce components that are cheaply priced, enhance SC performance, and expand their capacity.[2]

In this study, the imidazolium-based ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([BMIM]Cl) was successfully synthesized and evaluated as an electrolyte for activated carbon-based electrochemical capacitors (ECs) over a wide temperature range (25–100 °C). The 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride electrolyte demonstrated high thermal stability up to 250 °C and tunable physicochemical properties, with viscosity decreasing and ionic conductivity increasing as the temperature rose, thereby enhancing electrochemical performance. The viscosity of [BMIM]Cl was measured across a temperature range of 298 to 373 K, demonstrating a decrease from approximately 16,000 Pa·s at room temperature with increasing temperatures. Concurrently, the conductivity values were observed to approximately 0.7 S·cm⁻1 at 373 K. Cyclic voltammetry confirmed the electrolyte’s stability in an extended voltage window of up to 3 V, a critical factor for achieving higher energy densities in ECs. Galvanostatic charge–discharge (GCD) studies revealed a clear temperature-dependent performance improvement, with specific capacitance increasing from 71.59 F g⁻1 at 25 °C to 151.67 F g⁻1 at 100 °C. The capacitance retention values of AC-based supercapacitors utilizing 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride IL were 81.92%, 82.67%, 84.14%, and 87.4%.The system also exhibited outstanding cycling stability, maintaining 87.4% capacitance retention after 10,000 cycles at 100 °C, underscoring the electrolyte’s robustness for long-term operation under elevated temperatures. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy further confirmed low internal resistance, with the charge transfer resistance dropping to 4.97 Ω cm2 at 100 °C, indicative of efficient ion transport and minimized interfacial barriers. Collectively, these findings position 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride as a cost-effective, corrosion-resistant, and environmentally benign electrolyte for next-generation supercapacitors.

References

[1]Lu, Q., He, D., Liu, X., Du, M., Xu, Q., & Wang, D. (2023). 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride affects anaerobic digestion through altering organics transformation, cell viability, and microbial community. Environmental Science & Technology, 57(8), 3145.

[2]Singh, N. S. S., Hammad, A. K., Abduvalieva, D., Aldulaimi, A. K. O., Sulaiman, J. M. A., Albadr, R. J., Taher, W. M., Alwan, M., Mushtaq, H., Kamangar, S., Islam, S., & Hasan, M. A. (2025). Leveraging 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ionic liquid as high-performance electrolyte for supercapacitors at different temperatures. Journal of Materials Science, 60, 23603-23618.

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