Biomass Treatment and Transformation Using Ionic Liquids

1. Biomass Treatment and Transformation Using Ionic Liquids Sanan Eminov, Imperial College London, London, UK, 2013 2nd year PhD student

2. Energy demand • It is estimated that the current consumption of petroleum is at a rate 100.000 times faster than nature can replace it. Alternatives: • Wind • Solar • Nuclear • Hydro • Biomass

3. Biomass is the only non-fossil option for organic chemical production . http://cr.middlebury.edu/es/altenergylife/sbiomass.htm

4. http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v454/n7206/fig_tab/nature07190_F2.htmlhttp://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v454/n7206/fig_tab/nature07190_F2.html

5. A pathway from biomass to platform chemicals Raines, R. T.; Binder, J. B. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2009, 131, 1979-1985

6. Ionic Liquids + Metal Catalysts • Ionic liquids are low melting organic salts (<100 0C) that potentially comprise wide application due to their fascinating properties and have emerged as promising “green” replacement for volatile organic solvents. • Like the conventional salts, ionic liquids are mainly composed of ions which are positively and negatively charge. • The most attractive properties of ILs are their chemical and thermal stability, non-flammability, and negligible vapour pressure.

7. Typical cations and anions used in ionic liquids

8. HMF yields in different ionic liquids Hu, S.; Zhang, Z.; Song, J.; Zhou, Y.; Han, B.; Dalton Trans 2010, 39, 4080- 4089

9. Sulphate-based ionic liquids Fructose HMF x Formic Acid Levulinic Acid HMF

11. Fructose HMF

12. High Temperatures

13. Conclusion • Synthesis of RTILs (room temperature ionic liquids). • High HMF yields without any side products. • Around 45 % HMF yield without the use of catalyst. • One of the highest (96%) HMF yields in the literature. • High reaction rate.

14. Thank You!