Critical approaches in the catalytic transformation of sugar isomerization and epimerization after Fischer-History,challenges,and prospects

The transformation of aldose to ketose or common sugars into rare saccharides,including rare ketoses and aldoses,is of great value and interest to the food industry and for saccharidic biomass utilization,medicine,and the synthesis of drugs.Nowadays,high-fructose corn syrup(HFCS)is industrially produced in more than 10 million tons annually using immobilized glucose isomerase.Some low-calorie saccharides such as tagatose and psicose,which are becoming popular sweeteners,have also been produced on a pilot scale in order to replace sucrose and HFCS.However,current catalysts and catalytic processes are still difficult to utilize in biomass conversion and also have strong substrate dependence in producing high-value,rare sugars.Considering the specific reaction properties of saccharides and catalysts,since the pioneering discovery by Fischer,various catalysts and catalytic systems have been discovered or developed in attempts to extend the reaction pathways,improve the reaction efficiency,and to potentially produce commercial products.In this review,we trace the history of sugar isomerization/epimerization reactions and summarize the important breakthroughs for each reaction as well as the difficulties that remain unresolved to date.

Reaction Rate Constant Evaluation of Thermal Isomerization of α-Pinene

Bayesian inference is applied in this study to evaluate the posterior distribution of rate consents for a thermal isomerization of α-pinene by considering the uncertainty associated with rate constant parameters and kinetic model structural error. The kinetic model of the thermal isomerization of α-pinene is shown to have a mathematically ill-conditioned system that makes it difficult to apply gradient-based optimization methods for rate constant evaluation. The Bayesian inference relates the posterior probability distribution of the rate constants to the likelihood probability of modeled concentration of reaction products meeting the experimentally measured concentration and the prior probability distribution of the parameters. A Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) is used to draw samples from posterior distribution while the Bayesian inference relationship is considered. Multinomial random walk Metropolis-Hastings is applied in this study to construct the histograms of rate constants as well as the confidence intervals and the correlation coefficient matrix. Results showed that the Bayesian approach can successfully apply to estimate the confidence interval of rate constants of reaction model by taking into consideration the uncertainty.

Synthesis of MgO-doped ordered mesoporous carbons by Mg^(2+)-tannin coordination for efficient isomerization of glucose to fructose

In-situ MgO-doped ordered mesoporous carbon(OMC@MgO)was fabricated by formaldehyde-free self-assembly method,in which biomass-derived tannin was used as carbon precursor replacing fossil-based phenolics,Mg^(2+)as both cross-linker and precursor of catalytic sites.Up to~20 wt% MgO could be doped in the carbon skeleton with good dispersion retaining well-ordered mesoporous structures,while more MgO content(35 wt%)led to the failing in the formation of ordered mesoporous structure.The OMC@MgO possessed a high specific surface area(298.8 m^(2) g^(-1)),uniform pore size distribution(4.8 nm)and small crystallite size of MgO(1.73 nm)due to the confinement effect of ordered mesoporous structure.Using OMC@MgO as the heterogeneous catalyst,a maximum fructose yield of 32.4% with a selectivity up to 81.1%was achieved from glucose in water(90℃,60 min),which is much higher than that obtained using the MgO doped active carbon via conventional post-impregnation method(26.5%yield with 58.3% selectivity).Higher reaction temperature(>90℃)resulted in decrease of selectivity due to the formation of humins.The designed OMC@MgO displayed tolerant to high initial glucose concentrations(10 wt%)and could remain good recyclability without significant loss of activity for three cycles.

A novel synthesis of highly active and highly stable non-noble-nickel-modified persulfated Al_(2)O_(3)@ZrO_(2) core-shell catalysts for n-pentane isomerization

The non-noble metal modified sulfated zirconia was found easy to deactivate.Herein,highly active and highly stable non-noble core-shell Ni-S_(2)O_(8)^(2−)/Al_(2)O_(3)@ZrO_(2) catalysts(Ni-SA@Z-x,x=Al content in wt%)have been successfully prepared and investigated for n-pentane isomerization.The results showed that the core-shell Ni-SA@Z-30 provided a sustained high isopentane yield(63.1%)with little or no deactivation within 5000 min at a mild reaction pressure of 2.0 MPa,which can be attributed to the following factors:(i)carbon deposition was greatly suppressed by the large pore size and huge pore volume;(ii)the loss of sulfur entities was suppressed because the small and highly dispersed tetragonal ZrO_(2) particles can bond with the S species strongly;(iii)strong Brønsted acidity can be maintained well after the isomerization.The pore structures and acid nature of the core-shell Ni-SA@Z-x are entirely different from those of the normal structure Ni-S_(2)O_(8)^(2−)/ZrO_(2)-Al_(2)O_(3),even though the Al content and the compositions of the individual components are the same.The Al_(2)O_(3)cores endow the catalysts with high internal surface area and high mechanical strength.Meanwhile,the ZrO_(2) shell,which consists of more and smaller tetragonal ZrO_(2) particles because of the large surface area of the Al_(2)O_(3)core,promotes the formation of more stable sulfur species and stronger binding sites.

Quantum Dynamics Calculations on Isotope Effects of Hydrogen Transfer Isomerization in Formic Acid Dimer

We present a quantum dynamics study on the isotope effects of hydro-gen transfer isomerization in the formic acid dimer,and this is achieved by multidimensional dy-namics calculations with an efficient quantum mechanical theoretical scheme developed by our group,on a full-dimensional neural network ab initio potential energy surface.The ground-state and fundamental tun-neling splittings for four deuterium isotopologues of formic acid dimer are considered,and the calculated results are in very good general agreement with the avail-able experimental measurements.Strong isotope effects are revealed,the mode-specific funda-mental excitation effects on the tunneling rate are evidently influenced by the deuterium sub-stitution of H atom with the substitution on the OH bond being more effective than on the CH bond.Our studies are helpful for acquiring a better understanding of isotope effects in the double-hydrogen transfer processes.

Seed-solution-induced Synthesis of FER Zeolite and Its Catalytic Application in the Skeletal Isomerization of n-Butene

A series of Ferrierite(FER)zeolites were prepared via hydrothermal synthesis in the absence of organic templates with the aid of sodium-type FER zeolite(NaFER)or NaFER suspensions(NaFERsus)acquired by NaOH solution treatment as seeds.The differences in the structures and acid sites of the obtained FER zeolite catalysts arising from the choice of seed were investigated,and the catalytic performances of the obtained FER zeolites were evaluated in the skeletal isomerization of n-butene.The results indicate that the samples synthesized using NaFERsus feature more Br?nsted acid sites(BAS)in the 10-membered-ring(10-MR)at the expense of strong acid and Lewis acid sites(LAS),compared with samples derived from NaFER.Therefore,the FER samples synthesized using NaFERsus outperformed the NaFER counterparts as the BAS in 10-MR and LAS were the main active sites,while BAS in 8-MR and LAS were responsible for side reactions,such as polymerization,cracking,and carbon deposition in n-butene isomerization.The optimized FER catalyst was continuously used for 720 h at 350℃ at 0.1 MPa under an n-butene space velocity of 2.0 h^(-1),during which the n-butene conversion remained at>40%,and the isobutylene yield was>37.5%.

Insecticidal Potential of α-Pinene and β-Caryophyllene against Myzus persicae and Their Impacts on Gene Expression

Myzus persicae(M.persicae)is now considered a threat to agricultural crops due to economic losses.Numerous synthetic insecticides applied every year against M.persicae,are reported to be unsafe for environment,humans,and beneficial insects.Furthermore,several species of Myzus have been found to develop resistance due to over application of these insecticides.Therefore,it is required to find some novel insecticide that would be safe for the environment as well as for humans.In the current study,two major pure constituentsα-pinene andβ-caryophyllene were evaluated for their insecticidal potential against M.persicae using a fumigant toxicity assay.Furthermore,impact ofα-pinene andβ-caryophyllene on expression of five different genes,e.g.,HSP 60,FPPS I,OSD,TOL and ANT responsible for reproduction,dispersion,and growth of M.persicae has also been investigated.To perform fumigant toxicity assay,five different concentrations(3.5,4,4.5,5 and 6μL L−1)ofα-pinene andβ-caryophyllene were prepared.Lethal concentration(LC)was calculated,and gene expression studies were executed through qRT PCR at LC30 ofα-pinene andβ-caryophyllene.Both constituents demonstrated excellent fumigant toxicity effects against M.persicae at all five concentrations.However,α-pinene shows significantly better results(98%)as compared toβ-caryophyllene(80%)after 72 h at 6μL L−1 of dose.The highest upregulation in expression was demonstrated at LC30 dose ofα-pinene in five in three out of five genes understudy(TOL,ANT,and FPPS I).Conversely,two genes HSP 60 and OSD demonstrated downregulation at LC30 dose ofβ-caryophyllene.Conclusively,our results highlighted the promising insecticidal potential of both compoundsα-pinene andβ-caryophylleneby interfering with the reproduction and development related processes in M.persicae,allowing us to recommend the phytoconstituents under investigation as an ecofriendly alternative to synthetic insecticides.

Study on the pinene isomerization catalyzed by TiM

The isomerization reaction of pinene is one of the most important chemical reactions in the deep processing of pinene. The purpose of this study is to improve the performance of the metatitanic acid by composite. The composite metatitanic acid catalyst TiM was prepared by adding Mn elements in the preparation process. The catalytic performance of TiM was evaluated. Comparison of TiM and metatitanic acid catalyst(Ti-FGP), the reaction rate of TiM catalyst was faster, and after the reaction, the yield of camphene and tricyclene increased about 1%. The catalysts were characterized by an SEM, FT-IR and laser particle size analyzer. The results show that the pinene isomerization reaction requires the synergistic action of the Br?nsted acid and Lewis acid.Br?nsted acid has great influence on the activity of catalyst, and Lewis acid has a great influence on the selectivity of the catalyst. The structure and morphology of the catalyst have a certain effect on the selectivity of pinene isomerization reaction.

Isomerization of linear C5–C7 over Pt loaded on protonated fibrous silica@Y zeolite（Pt/HSi@Y）

A novel fibrous silica Y zeolite (HSi@Y) loaded with Pt has been studied based on its ability to produce protonic acid sites originating from molecular hydrogen. The Pt/HSi@Y was prepared using seed assisted crystallization followed by protonation and Pt-loading. The product formed had a spherical morphology with bicontinuous lamellar with a diameter in the range of 500-700 nm. The catalytic activity of the Pt/HSi@Y has been assessed based on light linear alkane (C5-C7) isomerization in a micro-catalytic pulse reactor at 423-623 K. A pyridine IR study confirmed that the introduction of fibrous silica on Y zeolite increased the Lewis acid sites corresponding with the formation of extra-framework Al which led to the generation of more protonic acid sites. A hydrogen adsorbed IR study showed that the protonic acid sites which act as active sites in the isomerization were formed via dissociative-adsorption of molecular hydrogen releasing electrons to the nearby Lewis acid sites. Thus, it is suggested that the presence of Pt and HSi@Y with a high number of Lewis acid as well as weak Bronsted acid sites improved the activity and stability in C5, C6 and C7 isomerization via hydrogen spill-over mechanism.

Isomerization of n-pentane catalyzed by amide-AlCl3-based ionic liquid analogs with various additives

The isomerization of n-pentane to generate high-quality blending components for clean gasoline was catalyzed by several amide-AlCl3-based ionic liquid(IL) analogs with various amides as donor molecules. The catalytic performance of these IL analogs was evaluated in a magnetic agitated autoclave operated in batch mode.IL analog based n-methylacetamide(NMA)-AlCl3 with the amide/AlCl3 molar ratio of 0.65 showed excellent performance toward n-pentane isomerization because 0.65 NMA-1.0 AlCl3 had a low viscosity and bidentate coordination structure. The influences of reaction time, reaction temperature, and stirring speed on the catalytic performance were also investigated. Optimal reaction conditions comprised the reaction time of 1 h, the reaction temperature of 40 °C, and the stirring speed of 1500 r·min-1. Under optimal condition, the n-C5 conversion,research octane number(RON) increment, total liquids yield, and isoparaffin yield in isomerized oil were56.80%, 13.51, 89.90 wt%, and 44.32 wt%, respectively. A new mathematical model was constructed to predict the relationships among RON increment, RON increment/n-C5 conversion ratio, and n-C5 conversion. The new model indicated that an appropriate conversion per pass of n-C5 did not exceed 50%–55%. Various cycloparaffin additives were used to improve the catalytic performance of 0.65 NMA-1.0 AlCl3. The n-C5 conversion increased from 56.80% to 67.32%. The RON increment, total liquids yield, and isoparaffin yield reached 17.83, 97.36 wt%,and 63.74 wt%, respectively.

Effect of illumination intensity and light application time on secondary organic aerosol formation from the photooxidation of α-pinene

Secondary organic aerosol （SOA） formation from hydroxyl radical （OH.） initiated photooxidation of α-pinene was investigated in a home-made smog chamber. The size distribution of SOA particles was measured using aerodynamic particle sizer spectrometer. The effects of illumination intensity and light application time on SOA formation for α-pinene were evaluated. Experimental results show that the concentration of SOA particles increased significantly with an increasing of illumination intensity, and the light application time, the concentration, and the size of SOA particles were also increased. In addition, the factors influencing the formation of SOA were discussed. In addition, this article compared the effect of α-pinene with that of toluene, and discussed the contribution of α-pinene to SOA formation.

A Promising MoO_x-based Catalyst for n-Heptane Isomerization

The SiO2 and g-Al2O3 supported MoOx catalyst and a MoOx-SiO2 catalyst have been studied in a conventional fixed-bed flow reactor for n-alkanes isomerization. It is shown that the MoOx-SiO2 catalyst with SiO2 framework, in which the bulk MoOx phase is large enough to form typical mesoporous structure, is promising in terms of its advantages of both improved mechanical strength and high catalytic properties over the supported MoOx and bulk MoOx catalyst.

Theoretical Study of Halogen Effect in Isomerization of 2-Halo-[9]-annulen Anion at the DFT Level

Cis-trans isomerization of [9]-annulenanion（1） and its 2-fluoro-,2-chloro-and 2-bromo-derivatives（2,3 and 4,respectively） were investigated at the HF/6-31G＊ and B3LYP/6-311＋＋G＊＊ levels of theory.Cis,cis,cis,cis structures appear more stable than their corresponding cis,cis,cis,trans-isomers.The relative height of energy barriers for cis-trans isomerization is：2cis 〉1cis 〉3cis〉 4cis.This trend for the reverse trans-cis isomerization follows the electronegativity of the substituent at C-2（2trans 3trans 4trans 1trans）.

Chloroaluminate ionic liquid catalyzed isomerization of n-pentane in the presence of product distribution improver

The ionic liquid Et3NHC1-2AIC13 can catalyze the isomerization of n-pentane. This paper investigates the ionic liquid catalyzed isomerization performance of n-pentane with several product distribution improvers in an autoclave. The product distribution of n-pentane isomerization could be improved by such improvers as benzene, cyelohexane, and methyl cyclohexane at the expense of conversion of n-pentane. The optimal product distribution improver was determined to be cyclohexane. The yield of isomerate and the selectivity of liquid isoalkanes increased, whereas the conversion of n-pentane decreased, with increasing cyclohexane amount. At the same conversion of n-pentane, the research octane number （RON） of liquid product, with cyclohexane amount of 0.5 wt%, was about 1.3 higher than that without cyclohexane. At the same reaction conditions, the presence of cyclohexane enhanced the yield of isomerate, the selectivity of liquid isoalkanes, and the RON of the liquid product, but reduced the conversion of n-pentane.

Triphenylphosphine-catalyzed isomerization of alkynyl ketones in aqueous solution

An efficient isomerization of alkynyl ketones to (E,E)-diene ketones was developed. The reaction catalyzed by 20 mol% triphenylphosphine in aqueous media gave the desired products in good yields.

Effect of Ni Loading on the Catalytic Properties of Molybdenum Oxides for the Isomerization of Heptane

The catalytic properties of MoOx and incorporation Ni onto the MoOx for the isomerization of heptane have been investigated under atmospheric pressure at different conditions such as different flow rate of H2, different reaction temperature etc.. Compared with MoOx, the Ni addition to the MoOx markedly improved the isomerization activity of heptane by improving the reducibility of MoO3 and activation of H2 in reaction.

Isomerization of n-octane on NiW/HSAPO-11 Catalyst

The catalyst NiW/HSAPO-11 was prepared by impregnating Ni and W onto HSAPO-11 zeolite with two different methods. The isomerization and aromatization properties were investigated with an microreactor using n-octane as a feedstock. NiW/HSAPO-11 shows a high hydroconversion activity of n-octane, and the optimum operating parameters for the catalyst to produce high octane number products were: 400℃, 2.0MPa, VH2:Vn-octane= 400:1, liquid hourly space velocity LHSV=1.0h-1. Under the optimum reaction condition, the conversion efficiency, C5 liquid + product selectivity, isomerization and aromatization product selectivity were 69.80%, 56.95%, 79.73% and 1.29% respectively. The catalyst (S1) impregnated with Ni and W after the HSAPO-11 zeolite was combined with Al2O3 matrix, performed better than the catalyst (S2) impregnated with Ni and W before combining with the Al2O3 matrix.

Explanation of Theoretical Mechanism of Isomerization of L-Alanine Conformation for Experimental Results

B3LYP/6-31＋＋G＊＊ method was applied to investigate the mechanism of alanine isomerization.12 minima and 22 transition states were obtained after optimization and several paths of isomerization were found.It is found that intramolecular single-bond rotation and proton transfer might lead to isomerization.The energy barrier of C–N bond rotation was lower than 2.52 kcal·mol 1,while the energy barrier ranges of the rotation of C–C and C–O were separately 0.43~ 7.01 and 4.69~12.19 kcal·mol 1,and the minimum energy barrier of proton transfer was 30.76 kcal·mol 1.The most probable isomerization path and mechanism for the two most stable conformations was discussed to find that the highest energy barrier to be crossed in this path was 11.87 kcal·mol 1.In order to understand the microscopic nature why only 4 conformations were detected in the experiment,thermodynamic properties of all conformations at the experimental temperature of 391 K was calculated.It is found that conformations XII,XI,X and IX can only unidirectionally convert into conformations rapidly with low energy and vanish immediately.The other conformations were distributed according to Maxwell-Boltzman＇s law,and the distribution probabilities of conformations I,II,III,IV,V,VI,VII and VIII were respectively 27.2%,26.5%,25.8%,6.4%,5.2%,4.8%,2.5% and 1.6%.Conformations I,II and III with bigger probability and stronger absorption peak were easy to detect in the experiment.Conformation IV had a relatively smaller probability（6.4%） and weak absorption peak which,however,could also be identified.The other conformations had too small probability to identify in the spectrum.

RuCl_3·3H_2O Mediated Olefin Isomerizations in Ionic Liquids: A Highly Recyclable System for Olefin Isomerizations

Herein lies a convenient and highly efficient method of olefin isomerization in the presence of RuCl3？3H2O in ionic liquid（IL）. More importantly, RuCl3？3H2O is a robust and recyclable catalyst. Nine cycles of RuCl3？3H2O as the catalyst were performed for the isomerization reactions of the selected substrate in IL and MeOH.