Highly efficient and straightforward conversion of sugarcane bagasse into high value-added chemicals using carbonaceous catalyst in deep eutectic solvent

Abstract

The conversion of biomass to 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), 2,5-diformylfuran (DFF), levulinic acid (LA), formic acid (FA), and other platform chemicals is attracting more attention. In this work, the catalysts were prepared from sugarcane bagasse with H2SO4 (BG-H2SO4) and with p-TsOH (BG-TsOH) containing –SO3H, –COOH, and –OH groups on the surface and used for the conversion of sugarcane bagasse into these valuable compounds. The cellulose was extracted from the sugarcane bagasse by an acetate-based ionic liquid and used as a starting material for this conversion. After investigation, the optimal conditions were BG-H2SO4 (50 mg), MnCl2.4H2O (1 mmol), and [DMSO][ChCl] deep eutectic solvent (10 mmol) at 120 °C for 10 h. The highest yields of valuable products were 17.59 % of HMF, 15.92 % of DFF, 20.02 % of FA, and 41.09 % of LA. Catalytic performance was compared to traditional methods using sulfuric acid in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) or 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride (EMIMCl) ionic liquid. The BG-H2SO4 catalyst could be recovered and reused four times. Based on the study, the combination of BG-H2SO4, MnCl2.4H2O, and [DMSO][ChCl] demonstrated an efficient and sustainable reaction medium for biomass conversion. Our work will help the scientific community apply revolutionary technologies to sustainably create sophisticated materials with high technological application.