Recent Advances in the Catalytic Conversion of Biomass to Furfural in Deep Eutectic Solvents

Xu Zhang; Peng Zhu; Qinfang Li; Haian Xia

doi:10.3389/fchem.2022.911674

Recent Advances in the Catalytic Conversion of Biomass to Furfural in Deep Eutectic Solvents

Front Chem. 2022 May 9:10:911674. doi: 10.3389/fchem.2022.911674. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Xu Zhang^{1

2}, Peng Zhu^{1

2}, Qinfang Li^{1

2}, Haian Xia^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, College of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, China.
² Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab for the Chemistry and Utilization of Agro-forest Biomass, College of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, China.

Abstract

Lignocellulose is recognized as an ideal raw material for biorefinery as it may be converted into biofuels and value-added products through a series of chemical routes. Furfural, a bio-based platform chemical generated from lignocellulosic biomass, has been identified as a very versatile alternative to fossil fuels. Deep eutectic solvents (DES) are new "green" solvents, which have been employed as green and cheap alternatives to traditional organic solvents and ionic liquids (ILs), with the advantages of low cost, low toxicity, and biodegradability, and also have been proven to be effective media for the synthesis of biomass-derived chemicals. This review summarizes the recent advances in the conversion of carbohydrates to furfural in DES solvent systems, which mainly focus on the effect of adding different catalysts to the DES system, including metal halides, water, solid acid catalyst, and certain oxides, on the production of furfural. Moreover, the challenges and perspectives of DES-assisted furfural synthesis in biorefinery systems are also discussed in this review.

Keywords: biomass; catalysis; deep eutectic solvents; furfural; solid acid.

Publication types

Review