Conversion of carbohydrate biomass to methyl levulinate with Al2(SO4)3 as a simple, cheap and efficient catalyst

•Al2(SO4)3 is efficient for carbohydrate conversion to methyl levulinate (MLE).•Al2(SO4)3 provides L and B acid sites to catalyze carbohydrate conversion to MLE.•Other mono-, di- and polysaccharides can also be converted to MLE efficiently.

Al2(SO4)3 was developed as a simple and efficient catalyst for the synthesis of methyl levulinate (MLE) from carbohydrate biomass including fructose, glucose, mannose, sucrose, cellobiose, starch, and cellulose. The maximum MLE yield of 64% from glucose could be obtained at 160 °C for 150 min. Important roles of Al3 + and Brønsted acid sites generated by the hydrolysis/methanolysis of Al3 + were elucidated. The reaction process was revealed using in situ real-time attenuated total reflection infrared spectroscopy. Al2(SO4)3 can be regenerated easily and reused at least four times without the loss of activity.

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