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November 5, 2018, Research Highlights

Anion Enhancement at the Liquid-Vacuum Interface of an Ionic Liquid Mixture

At the ionic liquid-vacuum interface, both molecular dynamics (MD) and angle-resolved X-ray photoemission show that, for a mixture with a low concentration of [TFSI]-, the anion [OAc]- is slightly depleted from the interface, whereas the [TFSI]- anion is significantly enhanced relative to the bulk.

Scientific Achievement

IL-vacuum interface was studied and a quantitative connection between molecular simulations and angle-resolved X-ray photoemission was achieved.

Significance and Impact

Ionic species tend to behave differently at interface compared to its bulk, which is confirmed by MD simulation and angle-resolved X-ray photoemission.

Research Details

  • The liquid-vacuum interface was investigated for a ionic liquid (IL) mixture containing 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate, [C2MIM][OAc], and 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl) imide, [C2MIM][TFSI].
  • Both experiments and simulations reveal that the mole fraction of [TFSI]- increases significantly from the bulk value in the top 17 Å.
  • Simulations show that [TFSI]- has a preferred orientation at the liquid-vacuum interface.

DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcc.8b07995

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