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Green Chemistry
Cite this: DOI: 10.1039/c0gc90047h
www.rsc.org/greenchem
Ionic liquids in Green Chemistry
T. Welton
DOI: 10.1039/c0gc90047h
The launch of Green Chemistry in 1999
coincided with the explosion of interest in
ionic liquids that was associated with the
Published on http://pubs.rsc.org | doi:10.1039/C0GC90047H
arrival of good quality, accessibly priced,
commercial ionic liquids. This led to large
numbers of publications on the potential
of ionic liquids to act as solvents for
chemicals synthesis, often justified by the
ionic liquids being a green alternative to
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conventional molecular solvents. Also, a
number of papers reporting the synthesis
and properties of ionic liquids were pub-
lished in the journal. After all, if ionic
liquids are green solvents then where else
could be more appropriate to report their
various properties and uses?
In those earlier days the claim that ionic
liquids were green solvents largely rested
on the (then believed) non-volatility of
ionic liquids and its associated properties
(low flammability, ease of containment
etc.). This claim has since been challenged
on several occasions, particularly with the
toxicity and environmental persistence of
the most widely used ionic liquids being
noted as important negative green fac-
tors. In response to these challenges ionic
liquids have been being designed for low
toxicity and biodegradability.
Alongside this debate, the subject of
green chemistry has been evolving rapidly.
Today we would consider the notion of
any solvent being intrinsically green to be
based upon too narrow a view of what
it means to be green. As a discipline,
we would now judge a process solvent in
terms of the overall environmental impact
of the process that it is a part of. For
instance, we would now recognise that
if the use of a more hazardous solvent
Professor of Sustainable Chemistry, Imperial
College of Science Technology and Medicine,
South Kensington, London, UK SW7 2AZ
This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2011
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gave significant improvements to the to-
tal environmental impact of the overall
process than a less hazardous alternative,
then the greener choice is the former.
Similarly, one could imagine a situation
wherein a commercial product may have
its overall environmental impact reduced
by using a more hazardous liquid than
a less hazardous one. So, if there is no
such thing as an intrinsically green solvent,
should Green Chemistry now stop publish-
ing papers on ionic liquids?
The simple answer to this question is,
of course, NO. However, we do now need
to be a little more sophisticated in our
selection of which papers are appropriate
for Green Chemistry and which are not.
As demonstrated by the contributions to
the recent Green Solvents for Synthesis
conference in Berchtesgaden, a solvent
only becomes green in its use. It is clear
that ionic liquids are capable of deliver-
ing chemical synthesis processes that are
greener than the ones they replaced, partly
because they are already doing so in a
number of commercial applications. It is
also clear, again because such things exist,
that they can provide components in de-
vices whose use can lead to environmental
benefits. Articles that are about subjects
such as these are entirely appropriate for
Green Chemistry. That is not to say that
these articles must always be at the near
application stage of the research, with
full life-cycle analysis completed, but an
environmental benefit must be the pur-
pose of the work. For example, I have
myself published on the subject of physical
measurements to describe the polarity of
ionic liquids. In spite of the fact that this is
EDITORIAL
important information for green chemists
who are interested in using ionic liquids as
solvents, it is not itself green chemistry.
Hence, it should be and was published
elsewhere in a more appropriate journal.
On the other hand a paper that describes
how using an ionic liquid with a particular
polarity has led to a greener chemical
process would be appropriate for Green
Chemistry.
One subject that has been discussed
in-depth by the Editorial Board in this
respect has been ionic liquid toxicity. The
outcome of these discussions has been a
decision that ionic liquid toxicity should
be treated in the same way as physical
properties. Papers that are simply on the
subject of ionic liquid toxicity will no
longer be accepted by Green Chemistry.
For papers including toxicity studies to
be accepted, they must demonstrate how
these lead to the selection or design of
ionic liquids for some green process or
product.
Journals must evolve and develop with
the subjects that they cover and, unless
a journal is going to become one that is
ready to accept papers on all subjects, it
is necessary to set boundaries. This in-
evitably means the some submissions will
be considered to be outside the scope of
the journal. This is in no way a criticism of
the quality of the work being reported, just
a judgement on its fit. We do accept that
there are often fine judgements where this
is concerned, and differences of opinion
can occur. However, we assure all potential
authors that these decisions are always
taken after thorough consultation with
experts in the field.
Green Chem.