Royal Society of Chemistry, Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 39(16), p. 21321-21329, 2014
DOI: 10.1039/c4cp01926a
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The phase behaviour of phytantriol in the protic ionic liquid (PIL) 1-methylimidazolium pentadecafluorooctanoate (MImOF) and four different MImOF-water compositions was investigated by small- and wide- angle X-ray scattering (SAXS/WAXS), cross polarised optical microscopy (CPOM) and infrared spectroscopy (IR). MImOF is an unusual protic ionic liquid in that it contains a fluorocarbon anion and a hydrocarbon cation. This leads to MImOF having an unusual liquid nanostructure, such that it contains fluorocarbon, hydrocarbon and polar domains. No lyotropic liquid crystal phases were observed for phytantriol in neat MImOF. However, on addition of water, lamellar, cubic Ia3d and micellar phases were observed for specific MImOF-phytantriol-water compositions at room temperature, and up to 60 oC. The phase behaviour for phytantriol in the solvent mixture of 25wt%-MImOF/75 wt%-water was the most similar to the phytantriol-water phase diagram. Only this MImOF-water composition supported the Ia3d cubic phase, which had a lattice parameter between 100-140 Å compared to 86-100 Å in deionised water1, indicating significant swelling due to the MImOF. IR spectroscopy showed that a percentage of the water molecules were hydrogen bonded to the N-H of the MIm cation, and this water decreased the hydrogen bonding present between the cation and anion of the ionic liquid. This investigation furthers our understanding of the interaction of ionic liquids with solutes, and the important role that the different IL nanostructures can have on influencing these interactions.