Application of Ionic Liquids in Environmental and Food Fields

As a new type of green solvent, ionic liquids have made rapid progress in the fields of organic synthesis, separation, and electrochemistry due to their unique physical and chemical properties. At the same time, the new fluorescence characteristics and good separation and adsorption functions of ionic liquids have gradually developed in the field of environment and food, showing a good application prospect. Based on the work of our research group and the progress and development of research technology, this article reviews the research results of ionic liquids in environmental monitoring and food detection and extraction in recent years. In the environmental field, ionic liquids have the ability of detection and remediation and they show the advantages of fast, efficient, green and recyclable in the detection of environmental pollutants. In the field of food, ionic liquids provide a new idea for the detection and extraction technology of food components. While ensuring green, safe and pollution- free, they show superior selectivity, repeatability and stability, and simplify the operation steps and costs to a certain extent, showing the capture vitality with life characteristics. As a potential smart material, the mechanism of ionic liquids as fluorescent probes and separation extractants was discussed. Finally, the future development and research directions of ionic liquids are prospected, and it is expected to realize the intelligentization of ionic liquid materials and the general integration of development.