Utilization of ionic liquids as compatibilizing agents for polymer blends – preparations and properties

ABSTRACTABSTRACTRecently, ionic liquids have been utilized to compatibilize polymer blends. In this brief review, two types of ionic liquids utilized as compatibilizing agents for polymer blends are described, namely imidazolium-based and phosphonium-based ionic liquids. Additionally, the preparation of polymer blends with different processes is presented. The effects of ionic liquids as compatibilizing agents on the chemical, mechanical, and thermal properties of polymer blends are also briefly reviewed. The information presented in this review contributes to a better understanding of the preparation of polymer blends compatibilized with ionic liquids and the crucial properties of polymer blends.KEYWORDS: Ionic liquidcompatibilizerpolymer mixtureimidazoliumphosphonium Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Author contributionsConceptualization, A.A.S.; data curation, S.N.A.M.J.; formal analysis, S.N.A.M.J.; funding acquisition, A.A.S. and K.A.; investigation, A.A.S.; methodology, S.N.A.M.J.; project administration, A.A.S.; resources, K.A.; supervision, K.A.; validation, K.A.; writing—original draft preparation, A.A.S.; writing—review and editing, S.N.A.M.J. and K.A.; All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.Additional informationFundingThis brief review was funded by the Universiti Putra Malaysia under the Grant Putra IPM Scheme, project number GP-IPM/2021/9697900.Notes on contributorsAhmad Adlie ShamsuriDr. Ahmad Adlie Shamsuri received his BSc (Hons) in Chemistry from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) in 2006, his MSc (Chemistry) in 2009, and his PhD (Chemistry) in 2015, also from UKM. His career began as a research officer at the Institute of Bioscience, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), in 2008. UPM and government agencies primarily fund his research projects. Later, he was promoted to senior research officer at the Laboratory of Biocomposite Technology, Institute of Tropical Forestry and Forest Products (INTROP), UPM, in 2013.Khalina AbdanProf. Dr. Khalina Abdan is a professor of biocomposite manufacturing technology, polymer Biocomposite, disaster management research, and postharvest engineering at the Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). She earned her B.Eng degree in Agricultural Engineering in 1996 and a Doctor of Philosophy in Biocomposite Technology from the Universiti Putra Malaysia in 2006. Currently, she has been a Director of the Institute of Tropical Forestry and Forest Products (INTROP) since March 2020.Siti Nurul Ain Md. JamilAssoc. Prof. Dr. Siti Nurul Ain Md. Jamil is a lecturer in Materials and Polymer Chemistry. Her research team is in the Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). Her research works involve the synthesis of polymeric materials as potential polymers to capture heavy metal ions and organic pollutants (pharmaceuticals) from wastewater. In addition, her group synthesized drugs-loaded nanoparticles for topical medical applications.