Conversion of concentrated sugar solutions into 5-hydroxymethyl furfural and furfural using Brönsted acidic ionic liquids†
Abstract
Catalytic amounts of recyclable Brönsted acidic ionic liquids (BAILs) yielded HMF (73%) and furfural (81%) with high selectivity from highly concentrated solutions of D-fructose (40 wt%) and D-xylose (3 wt%), respectively. With a 6 wt% D-xylose solution, 73% yield was observed. An activity–property correlation of BAIL is established.