Organic Synthetic Approach for a Production of Fine Chemicals from Sugars

Abstract

Biomass-derived sugars have attracted increasing attention in recent years as an alternative carbon source. Although significant advances have been reported in the development of catalysts for the conversion of carbohydrates into key chemicals, only a limited range of products can be obtained. We herein describe the highly-selective syntheses of a range of useful compounds using biomass-derived sugars. Firstly, we focused on the upgrade of 1,3-dihydroxyacetone (DHA) generated from glucose to yield useful compounds. Additionally, we achieved the utilization of algal residue as a new carbon resource to produce important chemicals. The establishment of this novel synthetic methodology to generate valuable chemical products from saccharides renders carbohydrates a potential alternative carbon resource to fossil fuels.