Furfural production from xylose in a bi-phasic set-up

The production of furfural (FUR) from xylose was carried out using a biphasic batch reaction system. Isophorone and 2-methytetrahydrofuran (MTHF) have been used to extract FUR and enhance overall furfural yield by limiting its degradation to humins. The effect of time, temperature, and organic to aqueous ratio on xylose conversion and FUR yield were investigated. Experiments conducted at two temperatures (170 and 190 °C) were investigated in a stirred microwave-assisted batch reactor, which established the optimal conditions to obtain the highest FUR yield. The maximum FUR yields obtained from xylose were 82 mol% when using MTHF in 180 min (at 190 °C) and 43 mol% when using isophorone in 180 min (at 190 °C) with an aqueous to organic phase ratio of 5:1.