Absolute pKas of selected salts with different counter-anions were measured with high precision in four aprotic ionic liquids (AILs), which enables a detailed examination of solvation effect of ILs on salts. Interestingly, the counter-anions of the ylide precursor salts, protic amine, and phenol salts of this study, though differing dramatically in size and electron dispersion, were found to have no effect on the respective pKas of the substrates. This indicates that the ionic species generated upon acidic dissociation of the salts in weakly polar AILs of low dielectric constant (ε: 10–15) are not ion-paired, or in other words, behave like “free ions” as if in strongly dissociating molecular solvents of high polarity (e.g., DMSO). This suggests that the widely assumed ion-pairing phenomenon, an issue of much debate, is not important in the AILs under our experimental conditions, presenting a typical “ionic-liquid effect” on the solvation of charged species in AILs.

Absolute pKas of 25 sulfonamides in four ionic liquids (ILs) were measured spectroscopically with high precision and subsequently compared with those in conventional molecular solvents. It is found that the acidity order of these sulfonamides is as follows: in water > in DMSO > in ILs > in acetonitrile (ACN). The well-known solvent polarity index ε fails to explain the observed stronger bond-weakening effect of ILs in comparison to that of ACN, whose ε value is much greater. In addition, the regression analyses show that the pKas of sulfonamides determined in ILs linearly correlate with these in molecular solvents of distinct properties, but with various slopes. A rationale and related discussion on the effect of solvation in ILs are presented.

The equilibrium basicities of 21 frequently used amines in two room-temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) were measured precisely. The standard deviation was much superior to that sparsely reported elsewhere. The data comparisons revealed that amines are stronger bases in ionic ligquids than in DMSO and water but weaker base than in acetonitrile (AN). Interestingly, regression analyses demonstrate that the basicity scales obtained in two RTILs correlate well with that in AN but not with those in water and DMSO.

Equilibrium acidities (pKa) of 14 aromatic thiols in four pure room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) were precisely determined and the corresponding acidity scales were established for the first time. Regression analyses show a distinct double-line Hammett relationship with similar slopes and excellent linearity (R2 of 0.996–0.999) in all four ILs. This could be rationalized by a resonance enhanced effect of the IL cation to solvate the para substituent of feasible electronic structure (CSAR effect), revealing a typical and rarely seen “ionic liquid effect”.