Ionic Liquids Group

Welcome to the Ionic Liquids Group at the École Normale Supérieure de Lyon. The group is led by res. prof. Margarida Costa Gomes (CNRS) and by prof. Agilio Padua (ENS Lyon) and is part of the Theoretical Chemistry and Molecular Thermodynamics research axis of the Chemistry Laboratory

Our research concerns the design of liquid materials (solvents for reactions or separations, electrolytes, refrigerants or lubricants) for applications in sustainable chemical processes and devices. Starting from a study of interactions, ordering and dynamics at the molecular scale, we combine molecular simulations with experimental thermodynamics in order to understand the dissolving power, miscibility, interfacial or transport properties of complex liquids. The main research topics are:

  • Ionic liquids and eutectic solvents (DES), which are alternative solvents for green and sustainable chemistry, or electrolytes for energy-storage devices.
  • Interactions of liquids with materials, such as porous materials (MOFs), two-dimensional materials (graphene, MoS2) or polymers, to make porous liquids, to process materials and to study electrolytes for devices.

We develop polarisable force fields for molecular simulation of ionic liquids and different classes of materials, as well as experimental techniques to study interaction energies, phase behaviour and transport properties.

Contact:

  • agilio dot padua at ens-lyon dot fr
  • margarida dot costa-gomes at ens-lyon dot fr