Direct Production of Furfural in One-pot Fashion from Raw Biomass Using Brønsted Acidic Ionic Liquids

The conversion of raw biomass into C5-sugars and furfural was demonstrated with the one-pot method using Brønsted acidic ionic liquids (BAILs) without any mineral acids or metal halides. Various BAILs were synthesized and characterized using NMR, FT-IR, TGA, and CHNS microanalysis and were used as the catalyst for raw biomass conversion. The remarkably high yield (i.e. 88%) of C5 sugars from bagasse can be obtained using 1-methyl-3(3-sulfopropyl)-imidazolium hydrogen sulfate ([C 3 SO 3 HMIM][HSO 4 ]) BAIL catalyst in a water medium. Similarly, the [C 3 SO 3 HMIM][HSO 4 ] BAIL also converts the bagasse into furfural with very high yield (73%) in one-pot method using a water/toluene biphasic solvent system

A novel method for the pentosan analysis present in jute biomass and its conversion into sugar monomers using acidic ionic liquid

Recently, ionic liquids (ILs) are used for biomass valorization into valuable chemicals because of their remarkable properties such as thermal stability, lower vapor pressure, non-flammability, higher heat capacity, and tunable solubility and acidity. Here, we demonstrate a method for the synthesis of C5 sugars (xylose and arabinose) from the pentosan present in jute biomass in a one-pot process by utilizing a catalytic amount of Brønsted acidic 1-methyl-3-(3-sulfopropyl)-imidazolium hydrogen sulfate IL. The acidic IL is synthesized in the lab and characterized using NMR spectroscopic techniques for understanding its purity. The various properties of BAIL are measured such as acid strength, thermal and hydrothermal stability, which showed that the catalyst is stable at a higher temperature (250 °C) and possesses very high acid strength (Ho 1.57). The acidic IL converts over 90% of pentosan into sugars and furfural. Hence, the presenting method in this study can also be employed for the evaluation of pentosan concentration in other kinds of lignocellulosic biomass

A novel method for the pentosan analysis present in jute biomass and its conversion into sugar monomers using acidic ionic liquid

Recently, ionic liquids (ILs) are used for biomass valorization into valuable chemicals because of their remarkable properties such as thermal stability, lower vapor pressure, non-flammability, higher heat capacity, and tunable solubility and acidity. Here, we demonstrate a method for the synthesis of C5 sugars (xylose and arabinose) from the pentosan present in jute biomass in a one-pot process by utilizing a catalytic amount of Brønsted acidic 1-methyl-3-(3-sulfopropyl)-imidazolium hydrogen sulfate IL. The acidic IL is synthesized in the lab and characterized using NMR spectroscopic techniques for understanding its purity. The various properties of BAIL are measured such as acid strength, thermal and hydrothermal stability, which showed that the catalyst is stable at a higher temperature (250 °C) and possesses very high acid strength (Ho1.57). The acidic IL converts over 90% of pentosan into sugars and furfural. Hence, the presenting method in this study can also be employed for the evaluation of pentosan concentration in other kinds of lignocellulosic biomass

Lignin-Derived Syringol and Acetosyringone from Palm Bunch Using Heterogeneous Oxidative Depolymerization over Mixed Metal Oxide Catalysts under Microwave Heating

Biomass valorization to building block chemicals in food and pharmaceutical industries has tremendously gained attention. To produce monophenolic compounds from palm empty fruit bunch (EFB), EFB was subjected to alkaline hydrothermal extraction using NaOH or K2CO3 as a promotor. Subsequently, EFB-derived lignin was subjected to an oxidative depolymerization using Cu(II) and Fe(III) mixed metal oxides catalyst supported on γ-Al2O3 or SiO2 as the catalyst in the presence of hydrogen peroxide. The highest percentage of total phenolic compounds of 63.87 wt% was obtained from microwave-induced oxidative degradation of K2CO3 extracted lignin catalyzed by Cu-Fe/SiO2 catalyst. Main products from the aforementioned condition included 27.29 wt% of 2,4-di-tert-butylphenol, 19.21 wt% of syringol, 9.36 wt% of acetosyringone, 3.69 wt% of acetovanillone, 2.16 wt% of syringaldehyde, and 2.16 wt% of vanillin. Although the total phenolic compound from Cu-Fe/Al2O3 catalyst was lower (49.52 wt%) compared with that from Cu-Fe/SiO2 catalyst (63.87 wt%), Cu-Fe/Al2O3 catalyst provided the greater selectivity of main two value-added products, syringol and acetosyrigone, at 54.64% and 23.65%, respectively (78.29% total selectivity of two products) from the NaOH extracted lignin. The findings suggested a promising method for syringol and acetosyringone production from the oxidative heterogeneous lignin depolymerization under low power intensity microwave heating within a short reaction time of 30 min

Construction Hierarchically Mesoporous/Microporous Materials Based on Block Copolymer and Covalent Organic Framework

Hierarchically ordered mesoporous materials have gained significant scientific attention due to their high surface areas, uniform porosity over various lengths scales, high-volume storage capability, shape selectivity, enhanced mass transport and diffusion. These materials have been widely applied in the fields of photocatalysis, separation, adsorption, photovoltaic solar cells, energy storage and conversion, chemical sensing, and drug delivery. In general, hierarchically porous materials can be generated in two ways: through sol-gel template approaches and a combination of surfactant-assisted procedures. In this review, we discuss recent progress in the preparation, properties, and potential applications of four hierarchically ordered porous materials: hierarchical mesoporous silica, mesoporous phenolic/carbon, nitrogen-doped mesoporous carbon, and mesoporous/microporous covalent organic frameworks

Glucose isomerization catalyzed by bone char and the selective production of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural in aqueous media

The selective production of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) is important, and it is difficult with glucose substrates in a water solvent. Here we demonstrate a selective method for glucose-to-HMF conversion using the combined catalysis of bone char and 1-methyl-3-(3-sulfopropyl)-imidazolium hydrogen sulfate acidic ionic liquid catalysts with a high HMF selectivity (54%) in water

Metal Complexes of the Porphyrin-Functionalized Polybenzoxazine

New porphyrin-functionalized benzoxazine (Por-BZ) in high purity and yield was synthesized in this study based on 1H and 13C NMR and FTIR spectroscopic analyses through the reduction of Schiff base formed from tetrakis(4-aminophenyl)porphyrin (TAPP) and salicylaldehyde and the subsequent reaction with CH2O. Thermal properties of the product formed through ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of Por-BZ were measured using DSC, TGA and FTIR spectroscopy. Because of the rigid structure of the porphyrin moiety appended to the benzoxazine unit, the temperature required for ROP (314 °C) was higher than the typical Pa-type benzoxazine monomer (ca. 260 °C); furthermore, poly(Por-BZ) possessed a high thermal decomposition temperature (Td10 = 478 °C) and char yield (66 wt%) after thermal polymerization at 240 °C. An investigation of the thermal and luminescence properties of metal–porphyrin complexes revealed that the insertion of Ni and Zn ions decreased the thermal ROP temperatures of the Por-BZ/Ni and Por-BZ/Zn complexes significantly, to 241 and 231 °C, respectively. The metal ions acted as the effective promoter and catalyst for the thermal polymerization of the Por-BZ monomer, and also improved the thermal stabilities after thermal polymerization

Direct production of furfural in one-pot fashion from raw biomass using brønsted acidic ionic liquids

The conversion of raw biomass into C5-sugars and furfural was demonstrated with the one-pot method using Brønsted acidic ionic liquids (BAILs) without any mineral acids or metal halides. Various BAILs were synthesized and characterized using NMR, FT-IR, TGA, and CHNS microanalysis and were used as the catalyst for raw biomass conversion. The remarkably high yield (i.e. 88%) of C5 sugars from bagasse can be obtained using 1-methyl-3(3-sulfopropyl)-imidazolium hydrogen sulfate ([C3SO3HMIM][HSO4]) BAIL catalyst in a water medium. Similarly, the [C3SO3HMIM][HSO4] BAIL also converts the bagasse into furfural with very high yield (73%) in one-pot method using a water/toluene biphasic solvent system

Metal organic framework derived nickel phosphide/graphitic carbon hybrid for electrochemical hydrogen generation reaction

Development of efficient hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) catalyst composed of earth-abundant elements is scientifically and technologically important for water splitting associated with the conversion and storage of renewable energy. Herein, we report a new class of nickel-phosphide/graphitic carbon (NiP@GC) hybrid prepared by a two-step strategy: first pyrolyzing of Ni-based metal–organic frameworks (Ni-MOFs) and then phosphating. The HER performance of the as-prepared material was tested using linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) method in 0.5 M HSO electrolyte solution. Unexpectedly, the NiP@GC exhibited superior HER performance with the onset potential started at ∼93 mV and good durability due to the synergistic interaction of active NiP nanoparticles and graphitic carbon support. This study offers an attractive electrocatalyst toward the power-efficient electrochemical preparation of hydrogen energy