The role of the anion in the toxicity of imidazolium ionic liquids.

From the environmental protection point of view, the growing interest of ionic liquids in various industrial branches has raised concerns for the toxicity assessment of these compounds. The paper discusses the effect of salts containing the shared 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium [EMIM] cation as coupled with five different anions: bromide [Br], nitrate [NO3], p-toluenesulfonate (tosylate) [Ts], dimethylphosphate [dMP] and methanesulfonate [MS] on the growth and development of higher land plants - spring barley and common radish. The experiment was done according to the ISO Standard 11269-2:1995 and the OECD/OCDE Guide 208/2006. As the indications of phytotoxicity, the percentage of sprouts and the level of dry and fresh plant mass were used; in addition, the visual assessment of any signs of damage to the examined plant species, such as growth inhibition and chlorotic changes, was also made. Results of our study has proved the negative impact of ILs on the tested plants and the toxic effect of imidazolium salts was dependent primarily on the applied ionic liquids concentration. The common radish revealed the higher tolerance to the imidazolium as compared to spring barley. The anion type of ionic liquid was crucial for the toxicity against common radish.