Abstract
The separation process between 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) and trace glucose in glucose conversion is important in the biphasic system (aqueous–organic phase), due to the partial solubility property of HMF in water. In addition, the yield of HMF via the dehydration reaction of glucose in water is low (under 50%) with the use of Brønsted acid as a catalyst. Therefore, this study was conducted to optimize the production and separation of products by using a new hydrophobic ionic liquid (IL), which is more selective than water. The new IL (1,3-dibutyl-2-(2-butoxyphenyl)-4,5-diphenyl imidazolium iodide) [DBDIm]I was used as a solvent and was optimized for the dehydration reaction of glucose to make a more selective separation of HMF, levulinic acid (LA), and formic acid (FA). [DBDIm]I showed high performance as a solvent for glucose conversion at 100 °C for 120 min, with a yield of 82.2% HMF, 14.9% LA, and 2.9% FA in the presence of sulfuric acid as the Brønsted acid catalyst.
Highlights
The production of fuels, fine chemicals, and polymer precursors from biomass can decrease the current dependence on non-renewable energy sources [1,2,3]
The effects of [DBDIm]I as a solvent and H2 SO4 (Brønsted acid) in glucose conversion were observed at a temperature of 80 ◦ C, with a reaction time ranging from 20 to 120 min
The results showed that a longer reaction time is essential for a better glucose conversion in [DBDIm]I (Figure 2a)
Summary
The production of fuels, fine chemicals, and polymer precursors from biomass can decrease the current dependence on non-renewable energy sources [1,2,3]. 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) is a furan derivative compound and it is one of the products from biomass, glucose, and fructose conversion reactions. HMF has been considered as the potential renewable chemical platform to produce liquid fuels, intermediates of polymers, pharmaceutical products, fine chemicals, and other organic derivatives [1,4,6]. HMF production can be achieved by the dehydration reaction of carbohydrate derivatives such as fructose, glucose, sucrose, or cellulose in water, by adding an acidic catalyst [9]. Glucose is the most abundant monosaccharide, considered as the preferred raw material to produce HMF [10,11]. Glucose conversion to HMF, levulinic acid (LA), and formic acid (FA) is more complicated than fructose as substrates [6,12]
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