Sustainable Design of Ionic Liquids as Effective Adjuvants or Active Ingredients for Agrochemical Purposes: Synthesis, Properties and Toxicity Studies

Dear Colleagues,

Organic salts with a melting point below 100 ºC, called “ionic liquids” (ILs), already have quite a long history; nevertheless, they still attract the constantly increasing attention of the scientific community as well as industry. The vast majority of reported applications regarding ILs focus on the utilization of the unique combinations of chemical, physical and biological properties. In the past decade, significant progress in the field of ILs bearing bioactive components, with a particular emphasis on their use as chemical tools in agriculture and the preservation of agricultural products, was made. Particularly, the concept of herbicidal ionic liquids (HILs) has been developed in order to minimize the negative impact of currently applied herbicidal formulations on the living organisms, as well as the environment. The efforts directly associated with fine-tuning of the physicochemical properties of HILs have been proven to lead to the formation of structures with superior final properties. These, to name a few as examples, include reduced volatility, due to their ionic nature or increased efficacy as a result of their improved permeability across biological membranes. Moreover, the selection of appropriate cation−anion combinations allows a flexible design of HILs that exhibit the desired environmental advantages, e.g., low acute toxicity toward mammals, good biodegradability or reduced mobility in soil.

In this Special Issue, entitled "Sustainable Design of Ionic Liquids as Effective Adjuvants or Active Ingredients for Agrochemical Purposes: Synthesis, Properties and Toxicity Studies", we aim to gather research manuscripts and original reviews that focus on the synthesis and characterization of HILs in terms of their physicochemical properties, as well as their biological properties in greenhouse or field conditions. We also encourage the submission of articles focused on the assessment of environmental impact of this novel group of compounds. Moreover, critical voices regarding HILs are also welcome.

Dr. Michał Niemczak
Dr. Anna Parus
Dr. Marta Woźniak-Karczewska
Guest Editors

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