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Updated: Jul 9, 2026

Generation of Zerovalent Metal Core Nanoparticles Using n-(2-aminoethyl)-3-aminosilanetriol
Published on: February 11, 2016
Metal chlorides in ionic liquid solvents convert sugars to 5-hydroxymethylfurfural
Haibo Zhao1, Johnathan E Holladay, Heather Brown
1Institute for Interfacial Catalysis, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Post Office Box 999, Richland, WA 99352, USA.
Abstract:
Replacing petroleum feedstocks by biomass requires efficient methods to convert carbohydrates to a variety of chemical compounds. We report the catalytic conversion of sugars giving high yield to 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), a versatile intermediate. Metal halides in 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride are catalysts, among which chromium (II) chloride is found to be uniquely effective, leading to the conversion of glucose to HMF with a yield near 70%. A wide range of metal halides is found to catalyze the conversion of fructose to HMF. Only a negligible amount of levulinic acid is formed in these reactions.
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