Preparation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) from saccharide solutions in the presence of a solvent having a boiling point greater than 60° C. and less than 200° C. (at standard pressure, called low boiler for short)

• Main Authors: KINDLER ALOIS, FELDNER CARMEN, BACKES RENÉ, BLANK BENOIT
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 20.10.2015
• Subjects: CHEMISTRY; CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION ORPROCESSING OF GOODS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; HETEROCYCLIC COMPOUNDS; METALLURGY; ORGANIC CHEMISTRY; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS; TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINSTCLIMATE CHANGE

A process for preparing 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), which comprises a) feeding solutions (hereinafter called starting solution) comprising one or more saccharides and an organic solvent having a boiling point greater than 200° C. (at standard pressure) (called high boiler for short) and water,  and a solvent having a boiling point greater than 60° C. and less than 200° C. (at standard pressure, called low boiler for short) to a reaction vessel, b) effecting a conversion of hexose to HMF in the reaction vessel in the presence of water vapor with simultaneous distillative removal of the HMF and c) obtaining, as the distillate, an aqueous, HMF-comprising solution (hereinafter called distillate).