Efficient synthesis of promising liquid fuels 5-ethoxymethylfurfural from carbohydrates

•A new method was developed for the synthesis of 5-ethoxymethylfurfural (EMF).•EMF was obtained in high yield of 88.4% from 5-hydroxymethylfurfural.•EMF yields of 67.8% and 58.4% were obtained from fructose and inulin, respectively.•The catalyst could be reused without the significant loss of its catalytic activity.

In this study, we have developed an effective method for the conversion of carbohydrates into liquid biofuels 5-ethoxymethylfurfural (EMF) over a magnetic solid acid catalyst (Fe3O4@CSO3H). The as-prepared magnetic Fe3O4@CSO3H catalyst showed high catalytic activity toward the synthesis of EMF from carbohydrates. The etherification of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) with ethanol over Fe3O4@CSO3H catalyst produced EMF with a high yield of 88.4%. The Fe3O4@CSO3H catalyst also showed high activity toward the one-pot conversion of fructose based carbohydrates into EMF. EMF was obtained in a yield of 67.8% from fructose, and that was 58.4% from inulin. The Fe3O4@CSO3H catalyst could be easily collected by an external magnet and reused for several times without the significant loss of its catalytic activity.