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 K2 CO3 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 C7 -C10 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.
Department of Chemistry, University of California Davis, 1 Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616 (USA). mjmascal@ucdavis.edu.
Mark
M
Mascal
Saikat
S
Dutta
Inaki
I
Gandarias
D015107:4-Butyrolactone / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000737:chemistry; D002384:Catalysis; D002482:Cellulose / Q000737:chemistry*; D006838:Hydrocarbons / Q000138:chemical synthesis*; D006868:Hydrolysis; D007982:Levulinic Acids / Q000737:chemistry*
D006838:Hydrocarbons; D007982:Levulinic Acids; C019257:angelica lactone; D002482:Cellulose; D015107:4-Butyrolactone; C032246:levulinic acid
biofuels; biomass conversion; isoalkanes; levulinic acid; sustainable chemistry