Laxative inspired ionic liquid lubricants with good detergency and no corrosion.

1-Alkyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(2-ethylhexyl)sulfosuccinate (L-DOSS10n, n = 2, 4, 8) ionic liquids (ILs) were synthesized from dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate (NaDOSS), which is a cheap, bulk available laxative medicine used for the treatment of constipation. The ILs showed lower corrosion levels and higher hydrolysis stabilities than conventional ILs such as 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium tetrafluoroborate (L-B104) and 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide (L-F104) due to their halogen-free characteristic. The tribological properties of the ILs were also better than those of L-B104 and L-F104 for various contacts. Thus, they can be used as replacements for conventional IL lubricants, which may solve the problems of corrosion and high cost to put conventional IL lubricants into industrial application. Coking test results indicated that the synthesized ILs have high deterging ability. Thus, these ILs may be used as lubricants that restrain carbonaceous deposition as well as oil sludge and varnish formation on the metal contacts during the sliding process. Moreover, the synthesized ILs can disperse, loosen, and remove the already formed harmful substances and keep the metal contacts clean.