Metals often are classified as “noble” or “base”—characterizing their reduction potential as one of the most important chemical properties. We show that metals are only as noble as allowed by their environment, i.e. this is a relative term, and the “frame of reference” simply is the solvent in which the redox system is present. We prove that silver is a prime example for a noble metal that forfeits its noble character in the simple ionic liquid HMIM Br (1-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide) as an example for such a solvent.

Graphical Abstract

中文翻译：

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倒哲学家的石头：如何将银变成贱金属

金属通常被归类为“贵金属”或“碱金属”-将其还原潜力表征为最重要的化学性质之一。我们表明，金属仅在其环境允许的范围内才是贵金属，即，这是一个相对术语，而“参照系”仅是存在氧化还原系统的溶剂。我们证明，银是贵金属的主要例子，在简单的离子液体HMIM Br（1-己基-3-甲基咪唑鎓溴化物）中，这种银丧失了贵金属的特性，例如此类溶剂。

图形概要