Catalytic biomass revalorization: 2-furaldehyde oxidation reactions

AGOSTINA CÓRDOBA; IVANA MAGARIO; CLARA SAUX; LILIANA BEATRIZ PIERELLA

Stuttgart

Congreso; 2 Bioeconomy Congress; 2017

Nowadays, an important challenge is the development ofintegrated biorefineries that includes biomass from agro-industrial waste, suchas forest, animal and urban. That means integrate the stages of production ofbiomass, i.e. production of intermediate goods (chemicals in bulk) and thevaluation of these intermediates in search of bio-products of great value,capable of replacing chemical compounds derived from fossil sources. Thus, the main objective of this study is the valorization of platformmolecules derived from biomass, such as 2-furaldehyde (Furfural), by a catalytic oxidation process using H2O2as oxidant. In this sense, the useof heterogeneous catalysts such as: (1) microporous andhierarchical porosity materials modified with transition metals, and (2)organometallics complexes supported on zeolites, will be the key in order to improve selectivity todesire products and to optimize reaction parameters. Thegoal is to obtain derivatives of great value through sustainable processes,especially Succinic acid. Thiscompound is between the 10 most important biomass derivatives since it is aprecursor of industrially important chemicals such as 1,4-butanediol, tetrahydrofurane,γ-butyrolactone and pyrrolidinone.Oxidation reactions were done at different hydrogenperoxide concentrations, temperatures and reaction medium (in presence or absenceof NaOH). Samples were withdrawn at different reaction times until 60 minutesand analysed by HPLC equipped with IR and UV detectors, after filtering inorder to separate the solid catalyst.  Blankreaction -without catalyst- showed low conversion values in the order of 40 mol% and low selectivity to succinic and furoic acids. However, when cooperimpregnated zeolites Y and ZSM-5 were employed as solid catalysts, furfuralconversion higher than 90% were obtained at 70°C. Maleic acid, succinic acidand fuoric acid were producted when transitions metals (Cu, Fe and Ni) andnobel metals (Pd and Pt) modified zeolites were employed as catalysts. Thepresence of sodium hydroxide in the reaction medium favoured the succinic acidformation. Besides this, acetic acid presence as an undesirable product was notdetected in these reactions.