One-pot efficient conversion of glucose into biofuel 5-ethoxymethylfurfural catalyzed by zeolite solid catalyst

The production of 5-ethoxymethylfurfural (EMF) from renewable and abundant biomass feedstock has attracted great attention due to its potential applications in the chemistry and energy industries. As one of the most abundant biomass, glucose has great significance for the production of EMF in large scale. In this study, an efficient one-pot conversion of glucose into EMF catalyzed by ultra-stable Y zeolite (USY) was developed. The effects of process parameters including reaction temperature, reaction time, reactant concentration, and catalyst dosage on EMF yields were systematically investigated, and the respond surface methodology was further used to investigate the interactions of different parameters. Under the optimum reaction conditions of reaction temperature 200 degrees C, reaction time 10 min, the substrate concentration 100 g.L-1, and catalyst dosage 1.8 omega t%, a EMF yield of 39.5 mol% can be obtained. Moreover, the products distribution was analyzed by GC-MS and a plausible reaction pathway of glucose one-pot alcoholysis reaction catalyzed by USY was put forward accordingly. At the same time, XRD, FTIR, BET, NH3-TPD, and Py-IR were used to characterize the reusability of USY, and the results showed that the structure of the catalyst was kept stable after being reused. After five cycles, the EMF yield was 31.4 mol% suggesting that the catalyst maintained high catalytic activity.

Automated summary

This study developed an efficient method for the conversion of glucose into EMF catalyzed by ultra-stable Y zeolite (USY), achieving a high yield under optimized reaction conditions. The products distribution was analyzed by GC-MS, and a plausible reaction pathway was proposed. The reusability of the catalyst was characterized using various methods, demonstrating stable catalytic activity even after multiple cycles.