An imidazolium-based task-specific ionic liquid derived from the natural kojic acid had its supramolecular interactions investigated in solid, solution and gas phase. The use of a set of techniques formed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, UV-Vis spectrophotometry, conductivity measurements, small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), electrospray (tandem) mass spectrometry (ESI-MS(/MS)), and theoretical calculations allowed a deep investigation of the structural organization of the task-specific ionic liquid and its supramolecular interactions.
ionic liquids; imidazolium; task-specific ionic liquids; supramolecular interactions; organization; X-ray; SAXS; UV-Vis; NMR; ESI-MS