Dehydration of fructose into 5-hydroxymethylfurfural in the presence of ionic liquids

The acid-catalyzed dehydration of fructose was performed in a microbatch reactor at 80 degreesC using two commercially available ionic liquids, a hydrophilic one, 1-butyl 3-methyl imidazolium tetrafluoroborate (BMIM+BF4-), and a hydrophobic one, 1-butyl 3-methyl imidazolium hexafluorophosphate (BMIM+PF6-). When the reaction is carried out in 1-butyl 3-methyl imidazolium tetrafluoroborate as solvent and Amberlyst-15 as catalyst, a yield up to 50% in 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) is obtained within around 3 h. When the reaction is carried out now in 1-butyl 3-methyl imidazolium tetrafluoroborate and in 1-butyl 3-methyl imidazolium hexafluorophosphate as solvents and Amberlyst-15 as catalyst, DMSO is used as a co-solvent, in order, in particular, to solubilize fructose in the hydrophobic ionic liquid. Under these conditions, both ionic liquids allow the reaction to work more rapidly than in DMSO alone and with yields in HMF close to 80% within 24 h. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.