1,2,4-Triazole-Based Tunable Aryl/Alkyl Ionic Liquids

Ionic liquids based on aryl-/alkyl-substituted imidazolium salts constitute a new generation of ionic liquids with a high degree of flexibility. The new concept could now also be extended to aryl-/alkyl-substituted 1,2,4-triazolium salts. The two different phenyl-substituted 1H- and 4H-1,2,4-triazoles have been synthesized by a coupling reaction or a one-pot synthesis with diformylhydrazine, respectively. Reaction with alkyl bromides provided the 1,2,4-triazolium bromides, and an anion-exchange reaction led to the corresponding bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)-imide salts with melting points well below 100 degrees C.