Experiment and Molecular Mechanism of Two Chlorinated Volatile Organic Compounds in Ionic Liquids

Abstract

The structure–property relationship between ionic liquids (ILs) and two chlorinated volatile organic compounds (CVOCs), dichloromethane (DCM) and 1,2-dichloroethane (DCE), was systematically investigated. The suitable IL was screened using the COSMO-RS model, and 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate [EMIM][Ac] was considered the optimal absorbent to capture the two CVOCs. The vapor–liquid equilibrium experiment demonstrates that the addition of the IL significantly reduces the vapor pressures of the IL + DCM (or DCE) systems. The structure of ILs on the absorption performance was investigated by absorption capacity experiments. Then, the absorption mechanism was investigated through QC calculations and wavefunction analysis. The consistency between the experiments and the molecular mechanism reveals that the formation of the hydrogen bond between the IL and CVOC enhances the absorption process.