Department of Chemistry, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
ChemSusChem. 2010 May 25;3(5):597-603. doi: 10.1002/cssc.200900285.
Existing technologies to produce liquid fuels from biomass are typically energy-intensive, multistep processes. Many of these processes use edible biomass as starting material. Carbohydrates, such as mono- and polysaccharides and cellulose, typically constitute 50-80% of plant biomass. Herein, we report that hexose from a wide range of biomass-derived carbohydrates, cellulose, and even raw lignocellulose (e.g., corn stover) can be converted into 2,5-dimethyltetrahydrofuran (DMTHF) in one step, in good yields and under mild conditions in water. Under the same conditions, 2-methyltetrahydrofuran is formed from pentose. The reaction employs a soluble rhodium catalyst, dihydrogen, and HI/HCl+NaI. The catalytic system is robust and can be recycled repeatedly without loss of activity. DMTHF is superior to ethanol and has many of the desirable properties currently found in typical petroleum-derived transportation fuels.
现有的生物质制液体燃料技术通常是能源密集型的多步过程。其中许多工艺都使用可食用的生物质作为起始原料。碳水化合物，如单糖和多糖以及纤维素，通常占植物生物质的 50-80%。在此，我们报告称，来自各种生物质衍生碳水化合物、纤维素甚至原始木质纤维素（例如玉米秸秆）的己糖可以在水相中一步转化为 2,5-二甲基四氢呋喃（DMTHF），收率良好，条件温和。在相同条件下，戊糖可转化为 2-甲基四氢呋喃。该反应采用可溶性铑催化剂、氢气和 HI/HCl+NaI。该催化体系稳定，可重复回收而不损失活性。DMTHF 优于乙醇，具有目前在典型石油衍生运输燃料中发现的许多理想特性。
