Hydrodeoxygenation of the Angelica Lactone Dimer, a Cellulose-Based Feedstock: Simple, High-Yield Synthesis of Branched C7-C10 Gasoline-like Hydrocarbons

Dehydration of biomass-derived levulinic acid under solid acid catalysis and treatment of the resulting angelica lactone with catalytic K2CO3 produces the angelica lactone dimer in excellent yield. This dimer serves as a novel feedstock for hydrodeoxygenation, which proceeds under relatively mild conditions with a combination of oxophilic metal and noble metal catalysts to yield branched C-7-C-10 hydrocarbons in the gasoline volatility range. Considering that levulinic acid is available in >80% conversion from raw biomass, a field-to-tank yield of drop-in, cellulosic gasoline of >60% is possible.