Production of aromatic hydrocarbons through catalytic pyrolysis of 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural from biomass

Catalytic pyrolysis of 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) was conducted on a fixed bed reactor at atmospheric pressure. HMF could be converted into aromatic hydrocarbons through catalytic pyrolysis. The catalysts and reaction conditions were both critical in maximizing the aromatic hydrocarbons selectivity. Four catalysts, β-zeolite, HZSM-5, Ga/HZSM and In/HZSM were tested in this study. HZSM-5 (Si/Al = 50) was found to be the most effective catalyst in both reactivity and selectivity among these catalysts. Under the reaction temperature of 600 °C, the highest carbon yield of 48.99% of aromatic hydrocarbons was achieved from catalytic pyrolysis HMF with HZSM-5 (Si/Al = 50) as catalyst. Moreover, the HZSM-5 (Si/Al = 50) catalyst was recycled for five times without shown deactivation of the catalyst.