German-Chinese research team develop DMF biofuel from bio-based HMF
In Germany, a German-Chinese research team has found a new synthetic route to produce biofuel from biomass. The chemists converted the substance 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) produced from biomass into 2,5-dimethylfuran (DMF), which could be suitable as a biofuel. Compared to previous methods, they achieved a higher yield and selectivity under milder reaction conditions.
The work was part of the German-Chinese research cooperation “Novel Functional Materials for Sustainable Chemistry”, which is supported by the German Research Foundation.
Although the conversion from HMF into DMF has been researched intensively, there are several hurdles. DMF production requires relatively harsh reaction conditions, such as high hydrogen pressure, and often only creates a small quantity of the desired product, while also forming unwanted by-products. Researchers are thus looking for new ways to efficiently trigger the reaction under milder conditions. This was achieved in the current work.
Category: Research
