This invention describes a one pot, single-step process for the preparation of 
halide-free hydrophobic salts comprising polyalkylated imidazolium cations and various anions in accordance with the following structure, where R1 and R3 represent the either the same or different 
alkyl groups, and R2, R4, and R5 represent either 
hydrogen atoms, or the same or different 
alkyl group substituents; X represents a polyatomic anion that is the conjugate base of an acid. By simply mixing aqueous 
formaldehyde with an 
alkyl amine such as methylanune, 
ethylamine, n-propyl oriso-
propylamine, or n-butyl-, iso-butyl, or t-
butylamine, or by mixing aqueous 
formaldehyde with two alkyl amines (preferably one being 
methylamine, 
ethylamine, n-propyl- or iso-
propylamine, or n-butyl-, isobutyl, or t-
butylamine) and another being n-propyl- or isopropylaine, or n-butyl-, isbutyl, or t-
butylamine), an acid (such as 
hexafluorophosphoric acid, 
trifluoroacetic acid, pentafluoropropionic, heptafluorobutyric acid, or the 
free acid of a bis(perfluoroalkylsulfonyprnide or 
tris(perfluoroalkylsulfonyl)methide as the source of the anion) and aqueous 
glyoxal solution, the hydrophobic ionic salts or mixtures thereof thus formed may be conveniently separated directly from the aqueous byproduct layer. Like the single cation hydrophobic salts, these mixed hydrophobic ionic liquids are non-flammable and manifest no detectable 
vapor pressure up to their 
decomposition temperature of greater than 300° C. We have also discovered that, surprisingly, ternary mixtures of dialkylated ionic liquids manifest higher ionic conductivities than a single 
ionic liquid of the mixture alone. This property benefits electrochemical power source applications such as batteries and capacitors. Furthermore, we have discovered that ternary mixtures of dialkylated ionic liquids absorb 
microwave radiation more efficiently than a single 
ionic liquid of the mixture alone. This property benefits 
microwave-induced synthetic reactions. Such physical and chemical properties make it possible to employ inexpensive mixtures of polyalkylated imidazolium cations in an advantageous manner as 
thermal transfer fluids, high temperature lubricants, and plasticizers, and as solvents in the areas of 
electrochemistry, synthetic 
chemistry, 
catalysis, and separations 
chemistry.