Efficient Production of the Liquid Fuel 2,5‐Dimethylfuran from Fructose Using Formic Acid as a Reagent

Three in one: New reagents are needed to generate liquid fuels from biomass, but the reagents must serve multiple roles. For the conversion of fructose into the title compound 1, formic acid serves three roles: assists in the isomerization/dehydration, serves as an H2 source for hydrogenation, and helps deoxygenate the alcohol functional groups.