Advances in the synthesis and application of 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid

2,5-Furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) can be produced from biomass or its derived sugars or platform chemicals, and has demonstrated to be a very promising substitute for petroleum-derived polymer products. Notably, FDCA in combination with ethylene serves as a copolymer for the production of polyethylene furanoate (PEF), a bioplastic with improved material properties compared to the large-volume polymer polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

For FDCA production, far more focus has been directed on oxidative conversion of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (5-HMF) by chemocatalysis using homogeneous and heterogeneous systems with noble metals. These systems are promising in terms of yield, reaction rate, and product purity but impractical due to their high cost base.

Alternatively, have less costly-but also less productive-base metal or metal-free chemocatalyst systems, as well as bio-, electro-, and photocatalytic approaches, also been examined for the oxidation of 5-HMF to FDCA. This chapter surveys recent advances in the production of FDCA with particular focus on applied catalytic systems and highlights applications of FDCA.