Dehydration of fructose into furans over zeolite catalyst using carbon black as adsorbent

Formation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) from the dehydration of fructose over zeolite catalysts in aqueous phase was studied in a reactive adsorption system using carbon black (BP2000) as an adsorbent. The dehydration of fructose over zeolite beta catalyst in water revealed that selectivity to HMF is largely influenced by the formation of levulinic acid and formic acid from the rehydration of produced HMF as well as subsequent condensation reactions. In order to increase selectivity to HMF, reactive adsorption with carbon adsorbents was used to prevent the further reactions of the produced HMF. It was found that BP2000 carbon black exhibited high selectivity and capacity for the adsorption of HMF and furfural from the aqueous phase. The unique adsorption performance of BP2000 is likely due to the large surface area, hydrophobic nature and micropore structure. With using the carbon adsorbent, furan selectivity (selectivity of HMF and furfural) over zeolite beta was improved from 27% to 44% with a furan yield of 41%. The furan selectivity and yield obtained in the presence of the carbon adsorbent were similar to those obtained from the aqueous/organic reaction system using methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK) as an extraction phase. (C) 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.