Issue 24, 2023

Towards scalable reductive etherification of 5-hydroxymethyl-furfural through iridium-zeolite-based bifunctional catalysis

Abstract

Developing practical and scalable catalytic approaches for directly converting concentrated 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) into value-added bio-based chemicals represents a major challenge in efforts to make the lignocellulosic biorefinery a sustainable and ecologically viable reality. We present here Ir/Na-ZSM-5 as a robust catalyst for efficiently producing 2,5-bis(methoxymethyl)furan (BMMF), a crucial compound for advanced biorefineries, through the reductive etherification of HMF. Benefitting from its unique structural features as well as the cooperative interaction between selective hydrogenation enabled by ultrasmall Ir nanoparticles and appropriate surface acidity resulting from alkali exchange, Ir/Na-ZSM-5 achieves impressive BMMF yields (91%) and maintains over 98% carbon balance from concentrated HMF (up to 22.6 wt%) under mild conditions (50 °C, 1 MPa H2). Moreover, the catalyst displays outstanding stability with an unmatched turnover number during extended flow-reaction processes, underscoring its applicability for large-scale production.

Graphical abstract: Towards scalable reductive etherification of 5-hydroxymethyl-furfural through iridium-zeolite-based bifunctional catalysis

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Communication
Submitted
17 Sep 2023
Accepted
06 Nov 2023
First published
17 Nov 2023

Green Chem., 2023,25, 10381-10386

Towards scalable reductive etherification of 5-hydroxymethyl-furfural through iridium-zeolite-based bifunctional catalysis

Z. Sun, M. Chen, K. Wang, C. Chen, J. Fei, W. Guo, C. Zhu, H. He, Y. Liu and Y. Cao, Green Chem., 2023, 25, 10381 DOI: 10.1039/D3GC03508E

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