TY: JOUR T1 - Enhanced conversion of xylan into furfural using acidic deep eutectic solvents with dual solvent and catalyst behavior A1 - Morais, Eduarda S. A1 - Freire, Mara G. A1 - Freire, Carmen S. R. A1 - Coutinho, Joćo A. P. A1 - Silvestre, Armando J. D. N2 - An efficient process for the production of furfural from xylan by using acidic deep eutectic solvents (DESs), which act both as solvents and catalysts, is developed. DESs composed of cholinium chloride ([Ch]Cl) and malic acid or glycolic acid at different molar ratios, and the effects of water and ?-valerolactone (GVL) contents, solid/liquid (S/L) ratio, and microwave heating are investigated. The best furfural yields are obtained with the DES [Ch]Cl:malic acid (1:3 molar ratio)+5?wt?% water, under microwave heating for 2.5?min at 150?°C, a S/L ratio of 0.050, and GVL at a weight ratio of 2:1. Under these conditions, a remarkable furfural yield (75?%) is obtained. Direct distillation of furfural from the DES/GVL solvent and distillation from 2-methyltetrahydrofuran (2-MeTHF) after a back-extraction step enable 89?% furfural recovery from 2-MeTHF. This strategy allows recycling of the DES/GVL for at least three times with only small losses in furfural yield (>69?%). This is the fastest and highest-yielding process reported for furfural production using bio-based DESs as solvents and catalysts, paving the way for scale-up of the process. UR - https://ria.ua.pt/handle/10773/27722 Y1 - 2020 PB - Wiley?VCH