Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 23, 2025
Improved In-gel Reductive β-Elimination for Comprehensive O-linked and Sulfo-glycomics by Mass Spectrometry
Published on: November 20, 2014
Direct conversion of C6 sugars to methyl glycerate and glycolate in methanol
Lei Feng1, Gang Li1, Yueer Yan1
1Department of Chemistry, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Molecular Catalysis and Innovative Materials, Laboratory of Advanced Materials, Collaborative Innovation Centre of Chemistry for Energy Materials (iChEM), Fudan University Shanghai 200433 China zhangyh@fudan.edu.cn yitang@fudan.edu.cn +86-021-65643288 +86-021-65643288.
Abstract:
The present work deals with the one-pot conversion of C6 sugars to methyl glycerate and glycolate via a cascade of retro-aldol condensation and oxidation processes catalyzed by using MoO3 as the Lewis acid catalyst and Au/TiO2 as the oxidation catalyst in methanol. Methyl glycerate (MGLY) is the product of C6 ketose (fructose), while methyl glycolate (MG) is produced from C6 aldose (mannose, glucose). It is found that a good one-pot match between two reactive processes is the key to the production of MGLY and MG with high yield (27.6% MGLY and 39.2% MG). A separated retro-aldol condensation and oxidation process greatly decreases their yields, and even no MGLY can be obtained in this separated process. We attribute this to high instability of glyceraldehyde/glycolaldehyde and their different reaction pathways which mainly depend on whether acetalization of retro-aldol products (glyceraldehyde and glycolaldehyde) occurs with methanol or not. This result opens a new prospect on the accumulation of C3 products other than lactate from biomass-derived carbohydrates.
Related Concept Videos
02:35Ethers from Alkenes: Alcohol Addition and Alkoxymercuration-Demercuration
Ethers can also be prepared from alkenes through acid-catalyzed addition of alcohols and alkoxymercuration–demercuration.
Preparation of Ethers by Acid-Catalyzed Addition of Alcohol to Alkenes
The acid-catalyzed addition of alcohol to an alkene involves treating the alkene with an excess of alcohol in the presence of an acid catalyst to form an ether under suitable conditions. The hydrogen will add to the less substituted carbon so that the nucleophile can attack the more...
02:15Preparation of Alcohols via Addition Reactions
The acid-catalyzed addition of water to the double bond of alkenes is a large-scale industrial method used to synthesize low-molecular-weight alcohols. An acidic atmosphere is required to allow the hydrogen in the water molecule to act as an electrophile and attack the double bond in an alkene. The addition of a proton to the double bond creates a carbocation intermediate. The proton preferentially bonds to the less substituted end of the double bond to create a more stable carbocation...
02:29Ethers from Alcohols: Alcohol Dehydration and Williamson Ether Synthesis
Ethers can be prepared from organic compounds by various methods. Some of them are discussed below,
Preparation of Ethers by Alcohol Dehydration
In this method, in the presence of protic acids, alcohol dehydrates to produce alkenes and ethers under different conditions. For example, in the presence of sulphuric acid, dehydration of ethanol at 413 K yields ethoxyethane, whereas it yields ethene at 443 K.
02:48Conversion of Alcohols to Alkyl Halides
01:14Alkylation of β-Diester Enolates: Malonic Ester Synthesis
01:20Energy-requiring Steps of Glycolysis