Molecular Dynamics in Ionic Liquid/Radical Systems

Molecular dynamics of the ionic liquid 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis­(trifluoromethyl sulfonyl)­imide (Emim-Tf 2 N) with either of the four organic stable radicals, TEMPO, 4-benzoyloxy-TEMPO, BDPA, and DPPH, is studied by using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and Dynamic Nuclear Polarization (DNP). In complex fluids at ambient temperature, NMR signal enhancement by DNP is frequently obtained by a combination of several mechanisms, where the Overhauser effect and solid effect are the most common. Understanding the interactions of free radicals with ionic liquid molecules is of particular significance due to their complex dynamics in these systems, influencing the properties of the ion-radical interaction. A combined analysis of EPR, DNP, and NMR relaxation dispersion is carried out for cations and anions containing, respectively, the NMR active nuclei 1 H or 19 F. Depending on the size and the chemical properties of the radical, different interaction processes are distinguished, namely, the Overhauser effect and solid effect, driven by dominating dipolar or scalar interactions. The resulting NMR relaxation dispersion is decomposed into rotational and translational contributions, allowing the identification of the corresponding correlation times of motion and interactions. The influence of electron relaxation time and electron–nuclear spin hyperfine coupling is discussed.