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The Effect of Solvent Polarity on Autocatalytic Furfural Production Confirmed by Multivariate Statistical Analysis
Author(s) -
Romo Joelle E.,
Miller Kyle C.,
Sundsted Tara L.,
Job Adam L.,
Hoo Karlene A.,
Wettstein Stephanie G.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
chemcatchem
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.497
H-Index - 106
eISSN - 1867-3899
pISSN - 1867-3880
DOI - 10.1002/cctc.201900969
Subject(s) - furfural , chemistry , yield (engineering) , xylose , autocatalysis , tetrahydrofuran , aqueous solution , solvent , sulfolane , organic chemistry , thermodynamics , catalysis , physics , fermentation
Autocatalytic dehydration of xylose to furfural was studied in pure aqueous and monophasic organic/water mixtures to determine the effect reaction media and conditions have on conversion and yield. This study identified that the severity ( R o ) of the reaction and polarity, as determined by the Hansen Solubility Parameter, δ P , strongly correlate with xylose conversion and furfural yield. Increasing the R o and δ P increased both conversion and yield in pure aqueous and organic/water mixtures of sulfolane, γ‐butyrolactone, γ‐valerolactone, γ‐hexalactone, and tetrahydrofuran. Additionally, it was found that at a specified R o and δ P , similar conversions and yields were achieved using different combinations of time, temperature, and solvent mixture. Using principal component analysis and projection to latent structures, a semi‐empirical model was developed that provided estimates of xylose conversion and furfural yield over a range of experimental R o and δ P values.