Submit to Special Issue Submit Abstract to Special Issue Review for IJMS Edit a Special Issue

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Special Issue "Ionic-Liquid-Based Materials and Solutions for Energy Applications"

Print Special Issue Flyer
Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Published Papers

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Materials Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2023 | Viewed by 3947

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Daniela M. Correia

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Centre of Chemistry, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
Interests: ionic liquids; smart and multifunctional materials; polymer-based materials; materials processing; surface treatments; sensors and actuators
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Carlos Miguel Costa

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Centre of Physics, University of Minho, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal
Interests: micro- and nanopolymer composites; energy storage applications; lithium-ion battery; anode and cathode materials; separator membranes; dielectric properties
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Senentxu Lanceros-Mendez

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

BCMaterials, Basque Center for Materials, Applications and Nanostructures, UPV/EHU Science Park, 48940 Leioa, Spain
Interests: multifunctional materials for sensors and actuators; environmental, energy, and biomedical applications
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The balance between the increasing demand of modern society in energy storage devices for different applications and environmental concerns regarding the use of fossil fuels is delicate and an important component of the solution for the implementation of sustainable energy generation and storage systems.

There are a variety of sustainable systems for energy generation, harvesting, and storage, as well as for thermal management, which rely on ionic liquids as an essential component. Ionic liquids (ILs) are being increasingly investigated for energy applications due of their physicochemical properties that include suitable chemical and electrochemical stability, non-flammability, negligible vapor pressure, and high ionic conductivity. There is a large variety of possible ILs available, their properties depending on the choice of the cation and anion, with relevant properties for energy applications being density, vapor pressures, viscosity, conductivity, diffusion, and thermal stability, among others.

In this context, this Special Issue aims to contribute to the recent scientific and engineering studies focusing on the improvement of ionic-liquid-based materials and solutions for energy applications with special focus on the characteristics of materials and devices at a molecular level, which determine the final properties and functionality.

It is our pleasure to invite you to submit original research papers or state-of-the-art reviews within the scope of this Special Issue.

Dr. Daniela M. Correia
Dr. Carlos Miguel Costa
Dr. Senentxu Lanceros-Mendez
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

ionic liquids
multifunctional materials
energy applications
molecular level

Published Papers (4 papers)

Download All Papers

Research

Jump to: Review

Open AccessArticle

Improvement of a Surfactant Blend for Enhanced Oil Recovery in Carbonate Reservoirs by Means of an Ionic Liquid

Nestor Tafur

Alberto P. Muñuzuri

and

Ana Soto

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(1), 726; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24010726 - 31 Dec 2022

Viewed by 949

Abstract

The promising experimental performance of surfactant blends encourages their use in recovering the large quantity of crude oil still remaining in carbonate reservoirs. Phase behavior studies were carried out in this work to propose a blend for practical application. To that aim, the surfactants dioctyl sulfosuccinate sodium (AOT) and polyoxyethylene(8) octyl ether carboxylic acid (Akypo LF2) were mixed. A formulation consisting of 1 wt% of AOT_50wt%/LF2_50wt% blend in synthetic sea water (SSW) led to a low value of interfacial tension with crude oil of 1.50·10⁻² mN/m, and 0.42 mg/g_rock of dynamic adsorption. A moderate additional oil recovery (7.3% of the original oil in place) was achieved in a core flooding test. To improve this performance, the surface-active ionic liquid 1-dodecyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide ([C₁₂mim]Br) was added to the system. The electrostatic interactions between the oppositely charged surfactants (AOT and [C₁₂mim]Br) led to a higher surface activity. Thus, a formulation consisting of 0.8 wt% of AOT_20.7wt%/[C₁₂mim]Br_25.3wt%/LF2_54wt% in SSW reduced the interfacial tension and surfactant adsorption achieved with the binary blend to 1.14 × 10⁻² mN/m and 0.21 mg/g_rock, respectively. The additional oil recovery achieved with the blend containing the ionic liquid was 11.5% of the original oil in place, significantly improving the efficiency of the binary blend. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ionic-Liquid-Based Materials and Solutions for Energy Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Open AccessArticle

Nanocellulose-Based Polymer Composites Functionalized with New Gemini Ionic Liquids

and

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(24), 15807; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms232415807 - 13 Dec 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 832

Abstract

The manuscript discusses the application of dimeric imidazolium ionic liquids with an aliphatic linker of different lengths, constituting a new class of compounds called gemini, for the modification of renewable materials. This innovative functionalization with the use of ionic liquids made it possible to obtain polymer composite nanomaterials with renewable fillers, which will reduce the consumption of petroleum-based raw materials and also be directly related to the reduction of energy intensity. Renewable filler in the form of nanocellulose modified with ionic liquids, as well as polymer composites with such filler obtained by extrusion and injection molding techniques, were subjected to detailed characterization using techniques like: X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform spectroscopy (FTIR), dispersion studies (DLS), morphological analysis (SEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), hot-stage polarized light microscopy and characterization of mechanical properties. The use of innovative dimeric ionic liquids proved to be an effective method to carry out efficient functionalization of cellulose. This provided a stable space structure between polysaccharide particles, limiting aggregate formation. It was shown that chemical modification with ionic liquids has a significant effect on the nucleation activity of cellulose fillers and the formation of the supermolecular structure of the polymer matrix, which consequently allowed to obtain polymer composites with excellent strength characteristics and increased flexibility, which will allow to increase their application potential. Innovative ionic liquids have contributed to obtaining green nanomaterials with excellent functional properties, which have not been described in the literature so far. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ionic-Liquid-Based Materials and Solutions for Energy Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

Open AccessReview

Renewable Biopolymers Combined with Ionic Liquids for the Next Generation of Supercapacitor Materials

Julia L. Shamshina

and

Paula Berton

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(9), 7866; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24097866 - 26 Apr 2023

Viewed by 564

Abstract

The search for biocompatible and renewable materials for the next generation of energy devices has led to increasing interest in using biopolymers as a matrix component for the development of electric double-layer capacitors (EDLCs). However, using biopolymers as host matrices presents limitations in performance and scalability. At the same time, ionic liquids (ILs) have shown exceptional properties as non-aqueous electrolytes. This review intends to highlight the progress in integrating ILs and biopolymers for EDLC. While ILs have been used as solvents to process biopolymers and electrolyte materials, biopolymers have been utilized to provide novel chemistries of electrolyte materials via one of the following scenarios: (1) acting as host polymeric matrices for IL-support, (2) performing as polymeric fillers, and (3) serving as backbone polymer substrates for synthetic polymer grafting. Each of these scenarios is discussed in detail and supported with several examples. The use of biopolymers as electrode materials is another topic covered in this review, where biopolymers are used as a source of carbon or as a flexible support for conductive materials. This review also highlights current challenges in materials development, including improvements in robustness and conductivity, and proper dispersion and compatibility of biopolymeric and synthetic polymeric matrices for proper interface bonding. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ionic-Liquid-Based Materials and Solutions for Energy Applications)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

Open AccessReview

Molecule(s) of Interest: I. Ionic Liquids–Gateway to Newer Nanotechnology Applications: Advanced Nanobiotechnical Uses’, Current Status, Emerging Trends, Challenges, and Prospects

and

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(22), 14346; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms232214346 - 18 Nov 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1144

Abstract

Ionic liquids are a potent class of organic compounds exhibiting unique physico-chemical properties and structural compositions that are different from the classical dipolar organic liquids. These molecules have found diverse applications in different chemical, biochemical, biophysical fields, and a number of industrial usages. The ionic liquids-based products and procedural applications are being developed for a number of newer industrial purposes, and academic uses in nanotechnology related procedures, processes, and products, especially in nanobiotechnology and nanomedicine. The current article overviews their uses in different fields, including applications, functions, and as parts of products and processes at primary and advanced levels. The application and product examples, and prospects in various fields of nanotechnology, domains of nanosystem syntheses, nano-scale product development, the process of membrane filtering, biofilm formation, and bio-separations are prominently discussed. The applications in carbon nanotubes; quantum dots; and drug, gene, and other payload delivery vehicle developments in the nanobiotechnology field are also covered. The broader scopes of applications of ionic liquids, future developmental possibilities in chemistry and different bio-aspects, promises in the newer genres of nanobiotechnology products, certain bioprocesses controls, and toxicity, together with emerging trends, challenges, and prospects are also elaborated. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ionic-Liquid-Based Materials and Solutions for Energy Applications)

► Show Figures