Bifunctional polyacrylonitrile fiber-mediated conversion of sucrose to 5-hydroxymethylfurfural in mixed-aqueous systems.

A highly efficient catalytic system composed of a bifunctional polyacrylonitrile fiber (PANF-PA[BnBr]) and a metal chloride was employed to produce 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) from sucrose in mixed-aqueous systems. The promoter of PANF-PA[BnBr] incorporates protonic acid groups that promote the hydrolysis of the glycosidic bond to convert sucrose into glucose and fructose, and then catalyzes fructose dehydration to HMF, while the ammonium moiety may promote synergetically with the metal chloride the isomerization of glucose to fructose and transfer HMF from the aqueous to the organic phase. The detailed characterization by elemental analysis, FTIR spectroscopy, and SEM confirmed the rangeability of the fiber promoter during the modification and utilization processes. Excellent results in terms of high yield (72.8%) of HMF, superior recyclability (6 cycles) of the process, and effective scale-up and simple separation procedures of the catalytic system were obtained. Moreover, the prominent features (high strength, good flexibility, etc.) of the fibers are very attractive for fix-bed reactor.