Cleavage of the β-O-4 bond in a lignin model compound using the acidic ionic liquid 1-H-3-methylimidazolium chloride as catalyst: a DFT mechanistic study was written by Zhu, Youtao;Han, Zhe;Fu, Lijun;Liu, Chengbu;Zhang, Dongju. And the article was included in Journal of Molecular Modeling in 2018.COA of Formula: C4H7ClN2 This article mentions the following:
Understanding the mechanism for the catalyzed cleavage of the β-O-4 ether linkage in lignin is crucial to developing efficient strategies for depolymerizing lignin. In this work, veratrylglycerol-β-guaiacyl ether (VG) was used as a lignin model compound in a theor. investigation of the mechanism for the cleavage of the β-O-4 bond as catalyzed by the acidic ionic liquid (IL) 1-H-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([HMIM]Cl). The reaction was found to involve two processes-dehydration and hydrolysis-in which the cation functions as a Bronsted acid (donating a proton) and the anion acts as a nucleophile (promoting dehydration) or interacts with the substrate through hydrogen bonding, stabilizing the intermediate. These roles of the anion and cation of [HMIM]Cl explain why the [HMIM]Cl medium catalyzes the depolymerization of lignin. In addition, calculations predict that adding formaldehyde during the depolymerization of VG prevents the condensation of VG without significantly altering the mechanism of depolymerization, thus suggesting a method for potentially improving the efficiency of lignin depolymerization In the experiment, the researchers used many compounds, for example, 1-Methyl-1H-imidazol-3-ium chloride (cas: 35487-17-3COA of Formula: C4H7ClN2).
1-Methyl-1H-imidazol-3-ium chloride (cas: 35487-17-3) belongs to imidazole derivatives. 1H-imidazole is an imidazole tautomer which has the migrating hydrogen at position 1. It is a conjugate base of an imidazolium cation. It is a conjugate acid of an imidazolide. It is a tautomer of a 4H-imidazole. Imidazole is incorporated into many important biological compounds. The most pervasive is the amino acid histidine, which has an imidazole side-chain. Histidine is present in many proteins and enzymes, e.g. by binding metal cofactors, as seen in hemoglobin.COA of Formula: C4H7ClN2
Referemce:
Imidazole – Wikipedia,
Imidazole | C3H4N2 – PubChem