Environmental and toxicological assessment of imidazolium ionic liquids

I&EC 179

P. Stepnowski, sox@chem.univ.gda.pl, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Gdansk, Gdansk, 80-952, Poland
Interest in ionic liquids for their potential in different chemical processes is constantly increasing, as they are claimed to be environmentally benign – a very good non-volatile solvents for a wide range of applications. Responsible product design however should always take into consideration not only technological demands but also the risks arising out of possible health and environmental hazards. This contribution presents our strategy where we are aiming to understand the fate of these entities through their life cycle. Toxicological studies are presented here including ionic liquids impact on the growth of eukaryotic cells of different origin. Further, lipophilicity and theoretical prediction of possible metabolic pathways is discussed. The data on ionic liquids distribution in soils and sediments is also presented as well as their photodegradation rates.