Low viscosity is a desirable property of ionic liquids enabling ease of handling and high diffusion coefficients for potential electrochemical applications. Similarly, for the development of solid state electrolytes high ionic conductivity is essential for a number of sustainable energy generation and storage applications. Organic ionic plastic crystals (OIPCs) are showing increasing promise in this role. OIPCs are structurally similar to ionic liquids but these salts exhibit higher melting points and various forms of disorder that result in plastic mechanical properties.

Judith Janikowski, Jennifer Pringle, and colleagues, Monash University, Australia, introduce new ionic salts based on the dicyano(nitroso)methanide anion combined with imidazolium, pyrrolidinium, ammonium and phosphonium cations. Investigation of the thermal properties, viscosity, and conductivity of the salts show that this anion can yield very low viscosity ionic liquids as well as new OIPCs that display good ionic conductivities and a wide plastic phase ranges.

• Organic Ionic Plastic Crystals and Low Viscosity Ionic Liquids Based on the Dicyano(nitroso)methanide Anion,
  Judith Janikowski, Mohd R. Razali, Stuart R. Batten, Douglas R. MacFarlane, Jennifer M. Pringle,
  ChemPlusChem 2012.
  DOI: 10.1002/cplu.201200211