Efficient Conversion of Glucose into Fructose via Extraction-Assisted Isomerization Catalyzed by Endogenous Polyamine Spermine in the Aqueous Phase
Sandeep Kumar, Shelja Sharma, Sushil Kumar Kansal, Sasikumar Elumalai
Abstract
ions, which are responsible for isomerization through the formation of an enediol anion. An attempt was made to further improve the fructose yield through the addition of neutral salts, but it promoted a meager achievement. In an alternate study, a selective extraction strategy was followed for the isolation of fructose from the reaction mixture. The employed aryl monoboronic acid remarkably improved the net fructose concentration, that is, fructose productivity up to 75% wt (cumulative) and 70% selectivity within three consecutive extractions and isomerization cycles, which is comparatively three times shorter than that reported in the literature. Notably, spermine itself provided the essential and necessary basic environment for selective fructose extraction and glucose isomerization, ruling out the use of any external reagents and thus establishing itself as a versatile material suitable for a typical isomerization reaction in an upscaled reactor.