The Influence of the Nature of Redox-Active Moieties on the Properties of Redox-Active Ionic Liquids and on Their Use as Electrolyte for Supercapacitors

Abstract

In this work, two new redox-active ionic liquids, one based on 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-N-oxide and the other based on 4,4′-bipyridine, are synthesized and characterized. A ferrocene-based redox-active ionic liquid is used for referencing the results. All ionic liquids are formed via salt-metathesis from halogenate to bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide. Their fundamental thermal characteristics are assessed with differential scanning calorimetry. While the imidazolium ionic liquids show no melting point, the phase transition is well observable for the viologen-based ionic liquid. The properties of the neat redox-active ionic liquids and of binary mixtures containing these ionic liquids (0.1 m) and 1-butyl-1-methyl pyrrolidinium-bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide have been investigated. Finally, the use of these binary mixtures in combination with activated carbon-based electrodes has been considered in view of the use of these redox-active electrolytes in supercapacitors.