Furfural production from hydrolysate of barley straw after dilute sulfuric acid pretreatment

Lignocellulosic biomass contains various fermentable sugars and versatile compounds, and should be isolated selectively. In this study, a two step process for furfural production is suggested. Dilute acid pretreatment, which solubilizes hemicellulose, was performed on barley straw at 110–190 °C temperature with 0.1–2% sulfuric acid for 2–20 min and a liquid portion of the hydrolysate was utilized. Using this hydrolysate, furfural production was conducted. Approximately 140–200 °C temperature induced the hydrolysis and pyrolysis of the hydrolysate. The initial reaction rate was found to be 2.84×10⁻⁵ mol/L·sec at 180 °C when reacted for 5min, 48.5% of theoretical furfural production was obtained, and it was faster than the generally used one step furfural production methods. In addition, a high temperature gradient for pre-heating showed improvement of temperature control.