Balakrishnan Madhesan, Sacia Eric R, Bell Alexis T
Energy Biosciences Institute, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of California at Berkeley, CA 94720 (USA).
ChemSusChem. 2014 Apr;7(4):1078-85. doi: 10.1002/cssc.201300931. Epub 2014 Mar 5.
Synthesis of transportation fuel from lignocellulosic biomass is an attractive solution to the green alternative-energy problem. The production of biodiesel, in particular, involves the process of upgrading biomass-derived small molecules to diesel precursors containing a specific carbon range (C11 -C23). Herein, a carbon-upgrading process utilizing an acid-catalyzed condensation of furanic platform molecules from biomass is described. Various types of sulfonic acid catalysts have been evaluated for this process, including biphasic and solid supported catalysts. A silica-bound alkyl sulfonic acid catalyst has been developed for promoting carbon-carbon bond formation of biomass-derived carbonyl compounds with 2-methylfuran. This hydrophobic solid acid catalyst exhibits activity and selectivity that are comparable to those of a soluble acid catalyst. The catalyst can be readily recovered and recycled, possesses appreciable hydrolytic stability in the presence of water, and retains its acidity over multiple reaction cycles. Application of this catalyst to biomass-derived platform molecules led to the synthesis of a variety of furanic compounds, which are potential biodiesel precursors.
从木质纤维素生物质合成运输燃料是解决绿色替代能源问题的一个有吸引力的方案。特别是生物柴油的生产，涉及将生物质衍生的小分子升级为含有特定碳范围（C11 - C23）的柴油前体的过程。在此，描述了一种利用酸催化生物质中呋喃类平台分子缩合的碳升级过程。已针对该过程评估了各种类型的磺酸催化剂，包括双相催化剂和固体负载催化剂。已开发出一种二氧化硅负载的烷基磺酸催化剂，用于促进生物质衍生的羰基化合物与2 - 甲基呋喃的碳 - 碳键形成。这种疏水性固体酸催化剂表现出与可溶性酸催化剂相当的活性和选择性。该催化剂易于回收和循环利用，在有水存在的情况下具有可观的水解稳定性，并且在多个反应循环中保持其酸性。将该催化剂应用于生物质衍生的平台分子导致合成了多种呋喃类化合物，这些化合物是潜在的生物柴油前体。
