Aiming at inexpensive Brønsted-acidic ionic liquids, suitable for industrial-scale catalysis, a family of protonic ionic liquids based on nitrogen bases and sulfuric acid has been developed. Variation of the molar ratio of sulfuric acid, χ H₂SO₄ , was used to tune acidity. The liquid structure was studied using ¹H NMR and IR spectroscopies, revealing the existence of hydrogen-bonded clusters, [(HSO₄)(H₂SO₄)]⁻, for χ H₂SO₄ > 0.50. Acidity, quantified by Gutmann Acceptor Number (AN), was found to be closely related to the liquid structure. The ionic liquids were employed as acid catalysts in a model reaction; Fischer esterification of acetic acid with 1-butanol. The reaction rate depended on two factors; for χ H₂SO₄ > 0.50, the key parameter was acidity (expressed as AN value), while for χ H₂SO₄ > 0.50 it was the mass transport (solubility of starting materials in the ionic liquid phase). Building on this insight, the ionic liquid catalyst and reaction conditions have been chosen. Conversion values of over 95% were achieved under exceptionally mild conditions, and using an inexpensive ionic liquid, which could be recycled up to eight times without diminution in conversion or selectivity. It has been demonstrated how structural studies can underpin rational design and development of an ionic liquid catalyst, and in turn lead to a both greener and economically viable process.

Due to its carcinogenic properties, the presence of formaldehyde in resins and other industrial products has been a subject of great concern in recent years. The presented review focuses on modern alternatives for the production of wood-based panels; i.e., substitutes for formaldehyde in the production of amino and phenolic resins, as well as novel hardeners for formaldehyde-free wood adhesives. Solutions in which formaldehyde in completely replaced are presented in this review. Recent advances indicate that it is possible to develop new formaldehyde-free systems of resins with compatible hardeners. The formaldehyde substitutes that have primarily been tested are glyoxal, glutaraldehyde, furfural, 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, and dimethoxyethanal. The use of such substitutes eliminates the problem of free formaldehyde emission originating from the resin used in the production of wood-based panels. However, these alternatives are mostly characterized by worse reactivity, and, as a result, the use of formaldehyde-free resins may affect the mechanical and strength properties of wood-based panels. Nonetheless, there are still many substantial challenges for the complete replacement of formaldehyde and further research is needed, especially in the field of transferring the technology to industrial practice.

Supported ionic liquid phases offer several advantages related with catalysis. Immobilization of ionic liquid on the solid support provides catalytic activity or efficient matrix for active phases, as enzymes or metal compounds. Ionic liquid can be physically adsorbed on the carrier (supported ionic liquid phase) or chemically grafted to the material surface (supported ionic liquid-like phase). The use of supported ionic liquid phases improves mass transport, reduces ionic amount in the process and, most importantly, enables effortless catalyst separation and recycling. Moreover, chemical modification of the surface material with ionic liquid prevents its leaching, enhancing length of catalyst life. Silica-based materials have become an effective and powerful matrix for supported ionic liquid-like phase due to its cost-efficiency, presence of hydroxyl groups on the surface enabling its functionalization, and specific material properties, such as the size and shapes of the pores. For these reasons, supported ionic liquid-like phase silica-based materials are successfully used in the organic catalysis.

The synthesis and characterisation of new hydrogen-bond-rich ionic liquids and studies of their catalytic performance in Diels–Alder reactions are described. D-Glucose and chloroalcohols were used as the raw materials and as the sources of hydroxyl groups for the synthesis of ionic-liquid cations, whereas weakly coordinating bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide was used as the anion. The new ionic liquids were analysed by ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy and by ESI-MS experiments, which confirmed their structures. In addition, the thermal data of the studied ionic liquids measured by differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis showed that these compounds tend to form a glass at temperatures in the range of −29 °C to −16 °C and are thermally stable from ambient temperature to at least 430 °C, most likely because of the presence of bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide anions. The performance of the ionic liquids in the model reaction of cyclopentadiene with diethyl maleate or methyl acrylate was investigated. The studied ionic liquids showed high activity even when present in catalytic amounts (4 mol% with respect to the dienophile). An increase in the number of hydroxyl groups present in the ionic liquid structure resulted in higher reaction rates.

Six new Re(I) complexes of the general formula [ReCl(CO)₃(4′-R-terpy-κ²N)] with 2,2′:6′,2′′-terpyridine-based ligands have been synthesized and characterized by IR, NMR (¹H and ¹³C), UV-Vis spectroscopy and single crystal X-ray analysis. The luminescent properties of [ReCl(CO)₃(4′-R-terpy-κ²N)] were studied in solution and solid state, at 298 and 77 K, respectively. To obtain detailed insight into the electronic structures and spectroscopic properties of [ReCl(CO)₃(4′-R-terpy-κ²N)], the density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent DFT (TD-DFT) calculations were performed. Also, the suitability of this class of materials for being applied in organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) has been preliminarily tested.