Tin-catalyzed efficient conversion of carbohydrates for the production of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural in the presence of quaternary ammonium salts

An efficient and tin-catalyzed production of 5-hydroxymethyl furfural (5-HMF) from carbohydrates is reported. The efficient conversion of glucose has been investigated using the combination of SnCl4 and different quaternary ammonium salts. It was found that tetrabutyl ammonium bromide (TBAB) was able to efficiently promote conversion of glucose to 5-HMF in the presence of SnCl4. For instance, a 69.1% yield of 5-HMF was obtained with SnCl4–tetrabutyl ammonium bromide (SnCl4–TBAB) system in DMSO for 2 h at 100 °C in air. The effects of catalyst amount, reaction time, and reaction temperature were investigated in detail. Furthermore, the SnCl4–TBAB was also employed to the conversion of fructose, sucrose, inulin, starch, and cellulose. The competitive results were obtained under mild conditions.

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► Efficient production of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural from carbohydrates is achieved.
► A 69.1% yield of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural is obtained from glucose.
► The effects of reaction time, temperature, and catalyst amount are investigated.
► Conversion of sucrose, inulin, and starch is studied with SnCl4–TBAB system.