A review on the use of ionic liquids in preparation of molecularly imprinted polymers for applications in solid-phase extraction

Abstract Based on its “lock-key theory”, molecular imprinting technique (MIT) has received extensive attention and obtained huge development. Because of their highly tunable nature and outstanding physicochemical properties, ionic liquids (ILs) as a promising substance class have obtained in-depth investigation and been widely utilized in various fields. The combination of MIT and ILs can not only enlarge research and application scope of ILs, but also well deal with some shortcomings and challenges of MIT. In this review, we will comprehensively summarize the related works about molecularly imprinted polymers incorporating with ionic liquids (IL-MIPs) and their application in solid-phase extraction (SPE). During the preparation of IL-MIPs, ILs take on different roles, sorting into single role (functional monomer, porogen, stabilizer, cross-linker, etc.) and dual/multiple role (monomer-stabilizer, monomer-cross linker, monomer-template, surface modifier-monomer, etc.). The application of IL-MIPs as SPE adsorbents will be discussed from the point of extraction form (off-line SPE and on-line SPE). In the end, the challenges and future outlook about this topic will also be discussed.