Herein, we report an approach to produce levoglucosenone (LGO) from cellulose in yields up to 51% under mild reaction conditions (170–230 °C; 5–20 mM H2SO4) using polar, aprotic solvents such as tetrahydrofuran (THF).
Triacetic acid lactone is demonstrated to be a versatile biorenewable molecule with potential as a platform chemical for the production of commercially valuable bifunctional chemical intermediates and end products, such as sorbic acid. † Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Experimental and computational details. See
Recent
advances in metabolic engineering have allowed for the production
of a wide array of molecules via biocatalytic routes. The high selectivity
of biocatalysis to remove functionality from biomass can be used to
produce platform molecules that are suitable for subsequent upgrading
over heterogeneous catalysts. Accordingly, the more robust continuous
processing allowed by chemical catalysis could be leveraged to upgrade
biologically derived platform molecules to produce direct or functional
replacements for petroleum products. Herein, we highlight recent results
that utilize a combination of chemical and biological catalysis, and
using the perspective of heterogeneous chemical catalysis, we identify
challenges that need to be addressed to bridge the gap between the
two catalytic approaches. Specifically, studies are required to address
the effects on catalyst performance of impurities that originate during
bioprocessing. In addition, new generations of heterogeneous catalysts
are required for stable operation under liquid phase reaction conditions
in the presence of biogenic impurities. Finally, the design and syntheses
of new catalysts are required to tailor the active sites and the environment
around these sites to achieve selective conversion of the functional
groups present in biologically derived platform molecules.
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