5-Hydroxymethylfurfural Synthesis from Hexoses Is Autocatalytic

Many researchers and articles have reported the development of synthesis methods for 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, one of the top 12 biobased building blocks listed by the U.S. Department of Energy. The focus has especially been on the development of efficient catalytic systems for this synthesis. In contrast, we report here a process that does not require any added catalysts, yet leads to interesting yields and selectivities. Moreover, we demonstrate that the process is autocatalytic involving formic acid, the byproduct.