Aqueous nitrile solutions, such as acetonitrile, exhibit non-ideal behavior, and in aqueous solution, often show propensity to concentrate towards the surface. The addition of ions to nitrile solutions often changes the solution and has been shown to impact the solvation structure of the species.  Liquid Jet-X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (LJ-XPS) is used to determine how potassium iodide (KI) affects two different aqueous nitrile solutions: acetonitrile and propionitrile.  The LJ-XPS technique allows the observation of both the surface and the bulk of aqueous solutions, in addition to gas phase information. With the addition of KI, the acetonitrile exhibits a salting-in effect, with the reduction of the signal at the surface. However with aqueous propionitrile solutions, the addition of KI reveals a salting-out effect at the solution interface. These studies elucidate the impact that ions have on the different layers of aqueous organic solutions.

Effects of ions on aqueous nitrile solutions

246th National Meeting (2013)

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