The addition of a simple amide to AlCl(3) causes the formation of a liquid of the form [AlCl(2)·nAmide](+) AlCl(4)(-). The material thus produced is liquid over a wide temperature range, is relatively insensitive to water and has the properties of an ionic liquid. This ionic liquid is shown to be a suitable medium for the acetylation of ferrocene and the electrodeposition of aluminium and demonstrated that quaternary ammonium cations are not always needed to form ionic liquids.

Graphical Abstract Highlights: Facile electro-deposition of bright Ni is possible from DES electrolytes at elevated temp. and high concentration. Harder Ni deposits are obtained from DES than from aqueous electrolytes. Similar deposition rates are measured despite the higher viscosity of the DES. AbstractMetal electrodeposition using ionic liquid electrolytes and deep eutectic solvents is now well known but to our knowledge for electrolytic deposition of metals such as nickel no direct comparison has thus far been drawn between deposition using aqueous solutions and DES under otherwise identical conditions. In the current study it is shown that nickel deposition can be carried out with similar deposition rates in aqueous and ionic media despite the significant differences in viscosity and conductivity. It is, however, shown that in ionic media the morphology of the deposits is markedly different from that achieved using a Watts nickel bath and that one aspect of these differences manifests itself in significant increase in the coating hardness. It is proposed that the observed morphology differences occur due to the variations of nickel speciation in each electrolyte environment.

The ubiquitous nature of starch makes it a tantalising basis of sustainable plastic manufacture. Extensive hydrogen bonding between chains, however, makes the plasticisation of starch difficult but this work shows that the incorporation of a simple quaternary ammonium salt can lead to a flexible plastic with mechanical properties similar to oil derived plastics. Compression-moulding produces a transparent material with mechanical strength which is similar to some polyolefin plastics. It is shown that the material can be extruded and/or compression-moulded and these processes improve further the mechanical strength of the samples. Most importantly, it is shown that these plastics are recyclable and ultimately compostable.

There is a growing need to develop novel processes to recover lead from end-of-life lead-acid batteries, due to increasing energy costs of pyrometallurgical lead recovery, the resulting CO2 emissions and the catastrophic health implications of lead exposure from lead-to-air emissions. To address these issues, we are developing an iono-metallurgical process, aiming to displace the pyrometallurgical process that has dominated lead production for millennia. The proposed process involves the dissolution of Pb salts into the deep eutectic solvent (DES) Ethaline 200, a liquid formed when a 1 : 2 molar ratio of choline chloride and ethylene glycol are mixed together. Once dissolved, the Pb can be recovered through electrodeposition and the liquid can then be recycled for further Pb recycling. Firstly, DESs are being used to dissolve the lead compounds (PbCO3, PbO, PbO2 and PbSO4) involved and their solubilities measured by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). The resulting Pb2+ species are then reduced and electrodeposited as elemental lead at the cathode of an electrochemical cell; cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry are being used to determine the electrodeposition behaviour and mechanism. The electrodeposited films were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). We discuss the implications and opportunities of such processes.

Organic and inorganic additives are often added to nickel electroplating solutions to improve surface finish, reduce roughness and promote uniform surface morphology of the coatings. Such additives are usually small molecules and often referred to as brighteners or levellers. However, there have been limited investigations into the effect of such additives on electrodeposition from ionic liquids (ILs) and deep eutectic solvents (DESs). Here we study the effect of four additives on electrolytic nickel plating from an ethyleneglycol based DES; these are nicotinic acid (NA), methylnicotinate (MN), 5,5-dimethylhydantoin (DMH) and boric acid (BA). The additives show limited influence on the bulk Ni(II) speciation but have significant influence on the electrochemical behaviour of Ni deposition. Small concentrations (ca. 15 mM) of NA and MN show inhibition of Ni(II) reduction whereas high concentrations of DMH and BA are required for a modest difference in behaviour from the additive free system. NA and MN also show that they significantly alter the nucleation and growth mechanism when compared to the additive free system and those with DMH and BA. Each of the additive systems had the effect of producing brighter and flatter bulk electrodeposits with increased coating hardness but XRD shows that NA and MN direct crystal growth to the [111] orientation whereas DMH and BA direct crystal growth to the [220] orientation.