Liquid phase reforming of rice straw for furfural production

In this study, rice straw was employed in liquid-phase reforming for furfural production. Rice straw was hydrolyzed with acid, ethanol, methyl-isopropyl ketone (MIPK), and water in an autoclave, and then reacted at 140 degrees C. Cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin were extracted, and their contents were determined. The Taguchi method was employed to obtain the optimal operation conditions for xylose dehydration. The optimal operation conditions were modified again to reduce costs and then applied to rice straw hydrolysate dehydration. The maximum furfural yield of the sample reaction using xylose solution was 35.19% at 200 C reaction temperature and 3 wt% hydrochloric acid added. The optimal operation conditions were 60 g/L initial xylose concentration, 150 degrees C reaction temperature, 0.75 g of Pt/Al2O3, and 5 wt% hydrochloric acid. Rice straw hydrolysate dehydration showed similar results with xylose dehydration. All additives (ethanol, MIPK and Pt/Al2O3) could be recovered and reused. Therefore, the method has promising future industrial applications. Copyright (C) 2013, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.