This presentation will describe our studies on the catalytic conversion of cellulosic biomass in ionic liquids (ILs) into sugars and 5-hydroxymethyl furfural (HMF), a versatile intermediate for feedstock chemicals and biofuels. Under relatively mild conditions and in the absence of added catalysts typically employed in biomass conversion, a mixture of suitable ILs with water, which is multi-functional (as solvent, reagent, and catalyst), depolymerizes cellulose into water-soluble reducing sugars in near quantitative yield; when a metal catalyst is added to this mixture, cellulose can be directly converted into HMF in good yield. Metal halides are currently employed almost exclusively as Lewis acid catalysts for the homogeneous conversion of glucose (or cellulose) to HMF in ILs. To this end, several non-halide-based, inexpensive metal catalysts have been developed for the efficient conversion of glucose into HMF in ILs. Lastly, the studies of using polymeric ILs to develop recyclable catalysts for biomass conversion in organic solvents will also be discussed.

Development of new molecular and supported recyclable catalysts for biomass conversion into sugars and HMF

243rd National Meeting (2012)

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