Quantification of chlorine impurities in water immiscible ionic liquids using ICP-MS

Abstract

A methodology for quantification of chloride in water immiscible ionic liquids has been developed using ICP-MS with organic accessory. Solvent mixtures using various ratios of organic solvent relative to water were studied for their ability to dissolve water immiscible ionic liquids and were used to examine the effect on detection limits. Two processes to reduce the content of chlorine in water immiscible ionic liquids were compared as was the effect of different synthetic routes for the same ionic liquid. The effect of instrumental parameters such as auxiliary gas, aspiration rate of sample, reflected power and forward power on system stability and signal enhancement were also examined. The quantitative relationship between the water content and halide content as well as other experimental issues will be discussed.