Glucose oxidation to carboxylic products with chemocatalysts

Abstract This chapter presents recent developments on the conversion of a biomass-derived monosaccharide, that is, glucose, to selective oxidation products, such as gluconic acid, glucaric acid, and formic acid. These oxidation products are deemed to be potential platform chemicals because they have a wide range of applications in the food, pharmaceutical, and textile industries. This chapter especially covers recent research publications for the production of those oxidation products from glucose with metal-containing chemocatalysts, including nonprecious metals, and their applications. The chapter describes further how the reaction parameters, such as oxidants (O2, air, and peroxides), temperature, and time, influence the yield of target products under aqueous conditions. It also briefly includes the use of homogeneous catalysts for the transformation glucose to its oxidation products.