Dimethylfuran: a fuel that would replace gasoline

The group on Bioprocesses and Reactive Streams of the faculty of Mines works hard on the study of this biofuel that would be better than ethanol and equally efficient as gasoline. 2.5 dimethylfuran has a higher temperature than ethanol, for this reason, it diminishes the waste of fuel due to evaporation. Besides, the risks of explosion due to volatile gases are less probable.

The experts asserted that this is a biofuel that has not been investigated in depth. It has 40 percent more energy than ethanol. Besides it is insoluble in water, something that prevents, if mixed with gasoline, the absorption of humidity from the environment, diminishing the engine"s power.

Using an engine with ethanol is less effective than using gasoline. On the contrary, with 2.5 dimethylfuran, the consumption of gallons is the same, as well as the power, since they are similar and do not generate problems in the engine due to the change of fuel.

Andres Felipe Sierra Salazar, researcher, explained that "this biofule can be obtained from any plant, vegetal source with sugars of six atoms of carbon." For this, asserted the researcher, lignocellulosic material is used, which is waste that cannot be used as food such as fruit skin, stalks, among others.

Before obtaining the fuel, a compound known as 5 hydroxymethylfurfural is obtained, and after that, in a process of catalytic conversion, it is changed into 2.5 dimethylfuran. Sierra mentioned that "a more efficient method for the conversion of biomass in the first compound has to be developed. However, in 10 years, this biofuel will be a mass product."

"We will be benefited from this, since the product comes from a vegetal material; besides, using it would mean the reduction of the use of fuels derived from petroleum , making a renovation of CO" in the planet possible," concluded Sierra.