Sophie Kasper
Master Student
Contact: sophie.kasper@bce.au.dk
R &D Project:
Development of bio-based ionic liquids as polymporph-specific crystallization media
Polymorphism is a phenomenon where a compound can exist in multiple solid form. These various polymorphs arise from different arrangement of molecules or ions in the crystal structure leading to distinct physical properties such as melting point, solubility, or colour. Understanding and controlling polymorphism is crucial for various industries, in particular for pharmaceuticals, herbicides, dyes and pigments.
The formation of different polymorphs during crystallization is influenced by external factors like temperature, pressure, and solvent choice. Ionic liquids, which are salts with a melting point below 100 °C, offer the advantage over traditional solvents as crystallization that it is possible to tune intermolecular/-ionic interactions through structural variation. In the context of Green & Sustainable Chemistry, an interesting aspect is to use components derived from the bio-pool.
Master Project:
Ionic liquids for thermal energy storage
Solar energy is considered a green and sustainable energy source. Harvesting it is particularly important for a sustainable society. However, there come challenges due to fluctuations in supply and demand with it. A solution to this problem could be thermal energy storage (TES). Over the past years, various TES concepts have been developed, including sensible TES, where heat is stored in liquids such as molten salts, or latent TES, where heat is stored in phase-changing materials. A particularly interesting avenue is the use of ionic liquids, hence salts that are composed of cations and anion of organic origin. In contrast to classic salts, their higher degree of variability can be utilized to find an ionic liquid with optimal properties for a desired temperature range.