Direct Conversion of C6 Monosaccharide-Based Carbohydrates to 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural by the Combination of Sulfated Zirconia and Ceria Catalysts

In this work, a series of ceria and sulfated zirconia (SZ) incorporated mesoporous SBA-15 catalysts were prepared via layer-by-layer grafting and subsequent wet impregnation methods. And the obtained catalysts were well characterized by SEM, TEM, XRD, TG, ICP-OES, PY-IR, NH₃/CO₂-TPD, and XPS. The catalytic activity of the prepared SBA-15 supported catalysts was investigated for the conversion of C6 monosaccharide-based carbohydrates including fructose, glucose, inulin, sucrose, cellobiose, maltose, starch and cellulose into 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) with the presence of iPrOH-mediated solvents, successively producing moderate to excellent yields of HMF under atmospheric pressure. Regeneration test showed the catalyst can be easily recovered and reused at least five times without significant loss of catalytic activity. The developed reaction system in this paper avoids the use of large amount of environmentally hazardous solvent, and offers a new route to large-scale economical viable processes for carbohydrates conservation.