This week in the lab, Dylan Karis has been investigating the synthesis of soy-based deep eutectic solvents (DESs). DESs are a class of ionic liquid defined by the unique morphology applied to their assembly. Whereas ionic liquids are discrete 1:1 blends of positively and negatively charged ions, DESs may be more complex mixtures. To make DESs, Dr. Karis utilizes soy fatty acid, which is easily obtainable from soybean oil, and a quaternary amine.

The goal of this project is to produce DESs that are inexpensive, biodegradable, and non-toxic to be used in metallurgic applications such as precious metal extraction. Additional applications include: electropolishing (process in the development of superconductors), chemical separations, electrolytes for lithium-ion or redox flow batteries, power generation, biocatalysis, biomass processing, nanomaterials synthesis, and lastly pharmaceuticals and medical research.

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