Improve furfural production from lignocellulosic biomass using Zn/MgAl2O4 catalyst

Furfural (FF) is a platform chemical with high value and wide application. The catalysts (Zinc oxide modified magnesium-aluminum spinel catalyst (Zn/MgAl 2 O 4 )) prepared in this paper allowed for the fast and efficient preparation of FF. Catalytic pyrolysis experiments were carried out on three typical biomass, and it was found that Zn/MgAl 2 O 4 had a significant enrichment effect on the production of FF in bio-oil. And the effect was more pronounced in the camphor wood experiments. Under pyrolysis conditions (400 °C, catalyst to biomass mass ratio is 1:1), FF relative content reached 64.31 wt%. Zn 2+ increased the acidic sites in Zn/MgAl 2 O 4 and accelerates proton transfer. Glycosidic bond cleavage and monomer degradation were significantly enhanced, resulting in improved FF conversion efficiency. The relative content of FF in the bio-oils obtained from pyrolysis of the three biomass feedstock in the temperature range of 400–600 °C was more than 50 wt%, and the results were better at low temperatures. The results of this paper can provide a theoretical basis for the preparation of FF from clean energy biomass.