EN
Hydroxymethylfurfural (abbreviated as HMF),
also 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural, is an organic compound
derived from dehydration of certain sugars. HMF is primarily
considered as a starting material for liquid transportation
fuels and polyester building block chemicals. The most
convenient synthetic method of HMF is based on acidcatalyzed
triple dehydration of fructose. Although there are
many studies about fructose dehydration to 5-HMF since this
field started to be investigated, it is necessary to provide a
new review about fructose dehydration to 5-HMF. In the
following, we will make a summary (in detail) of catalytic
systems of fructose dehydration to HMF achieved by different
acid catalysts, including mineral and organic acids, metal
complexes, heteropoly acid-based materials, Ionic Liquids,
ion-exchange resins, zeolites, functionalized carbonaceous
materials and mesoporous silica materials. It has been
demonstrated that nearly full conversion of fructose and
100% HMF selectivity could be obtained with some acidic
catalytic systems up to now.