The Chemistry of Levulinic Acid: Its Potential in the Production of Biomass-Based Chemicals

Biomass has been identified as the ultimate sustainable resource for all carbon-based consumer products of the chemical industries in the future. Its catalytic conversion leads to the formation of various platform chemicals that could partially or even fully replace the fossil-based building blocks that have been currently used in synthetic chemical processes. Among these compounds, levulinic acid (LA) has been recognized as a member of the “Top Value Added Chemicals from Biomass” and has attracted significant attention since the seminal paper reported by Werpy and Petersen in 2004. This review summarizes the properties, recent advances, and developments in the chemistry of levulinic acid. The production of LA from both plant and animal-based carbohydrate feedstocks via 5-hydroxymethylfurfural or furfuryl alcohol is discussed from a mechanistic perspective, highlighting intrinsic molecular-level limitations to LA formation. The efficiencies of recently developed catalytic systems are also summarized and compared. Furthermore, the conversion of LA into high-value-added downstream chemicals, including its role in the synthesis of complex molecular structures, is overviewed. This section discussed the reactions of LA in the points of view of its various transformations on carbonyl-, carboxy-, methyl-, and methylene functional groups. The reactions of these functionalities with C−, N−, O−, and S-nucleophiles, alcohols, amines, organometallic reagents, oxygen etc. were thematically summarized. Our review also outlooks to highlight the challenges and opportunities associated with the extensive research area of organic chemistry of levulinic acid.