Selective Oxidation of 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural to 2, 5-Diformylfuran Over a Vanadium Manganese Oxide Catalyst

5-Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) is a major feedstock derived from biomass which could be converted to various high-value-added chemicals. However, it is a challenge to obtain a target product with high selectivity under mild conditions using a heterogeneous non-noble catalyst. In this study, a vanadium manganese oxide catalyst was prepared by a simple chemical synthesis method. Detailed characterization was performed to reveal that the catalyst phase composition is V 2 O 5 and Mn(VO 3 ) 2 . The catalyst showed good catalytic activity in the selective oxidation of HMF to produce 2,5-diformylfuran (DFF) at atmospheric oxygen pressure. Under optimal conditions, DFF selectivity of 97.8% was obtained at 80 °C with acetonitrile as the solvent. Furthermore, the catalyst could be recovered conveniently and reused for several runs without significant loss of the catalytic activity. Graphic Abstract The vanadium manganese oxide catalyst was developed for the selective oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural into 2,5-diformylfuran under atmospheric pressure of molecular oxygen.