Exploring the Potential of Supported Ionic Liquids as Building Block Systems in Catalysis

Abstract Supported ionic liquid catalysts have gained significant attention in recent years to overcome the limitations of the homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis. The thin film containing dispersed homogeneous catalyst in the ionic liquid have been immobilized onto various porous solid supports having a high surface area to synthesize supported ionic liquids (SILs) that acted as potential organocatalysts in organic green synthesis. Support materials, ionic liquids, and molecularly dispersed catalysts have played a significant role in increasing the catalytic activity of the SIL catalysts. In the present review, the literature of the last decade concerning the synthesis of SIL catalysts by using different strategies as well as their applications in organic synthesis is incorporated. The main emphasis of the present work is to critically analyze the recent developments in the supported molecular dispersed catalysts (such as lewis acids, organometallic complexes, metal nanoparticles, and chemical functionality associated with cation/anion of ionic liquids) using ILs and explore their potential to act as building block systems in catalysis.