The use of biomass as a solution to satisfy the pressing needs for a fully sustainable biocommodity industry has been explored for a long time. However, limited success has been obtained. In this study, a highly effective two-stage procedure for the direct preparation of para-xylene (PX) from 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) and formic acid in one pot is described; these chemicals are two of the major bio-based feedstocks that offer the potential to address urgent needs for the green, sustainable production of drop-in chemical entities. The use of a robust, efficient heterogeneous catalyst, namely, bimetallic Pd-decorated Au clusters anchored on tetragonal-phase zirconia, is crucial to the success of this strategy. This multifunctional catalytic system can not only facilitate a low-energy-barrier H₂-free pathway for the rapid, nearly exclusive formation of 2,5-dimethylfuran (DMF) from HMF but also enable the subsequent ultraselective production of PX by the dehydrative aromatization of the resultant DMF with ethylene.

长期以来，一直在探索使用生物质作为解决方案来满足完全可持续的生物商品行业的紧迫需求。但是，已经获得了有限的成功。在这项研究中，描述了一种高效的两步法，可在一锅中直接从5-羟甲基糠醛（HMF）和甲酸制备对二甲苯（PX）；这些化学物质是两种主要的生物基原料，具有潜在的潜力，可以满足对即插即用化学实体的绿色，可持续生产的迫切需求。使用牢固，高效的非均相催化剂，即固定在四方相氧化锆上的双金属钯修饰的金簇，对于该策略的成功至关重要。这种多功能催化系统不仅可以促进低能垒H ₂-从HMF快速，几乎排他地形成2,5-二甲基呋喃（DMF）的游离途径，而且还可以通过将生成的DMF与乙烯进行脱水芳构化而随后进行超选择性生产PX。