2,5-Furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) is a pivotal bio-based monomer for biodegradable polyethylene furanoate (PEF), enabling packaging materials with 100% bio-sourced carbon. Yet, industrially viable routes from abundant C6 sugars remain elusive because sugar dehydration to 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) and subsequent oxidation to FDCA are multi-step and prone to side reactions, particularly at elevated temperatures. Here, we present a visible-light-enabled catalytic strategy that improves selectivity by operating under mild conditions and by decoupling dehydration and oxidation functions.
For dehydration, we show that plasmonic silver nanoparticles amplify visible light to enhance Lewis acid catalysis by immobilised metal ions. Under irradiation, AgNPs coupled to Cr³⁺ sites convert D-glucose to HMF with a 68% yield, delivering a 13.4-fold increase in turnover number compared to dark conditions. Complementarily, we demonstrate “light-antenna” complexation, in which fulvic-acid-derived ligands coordinate Al³⁺ to form solar-absorbing catalytic complexes, enabling one-pot glucose-to-HMF conversion (~60% at 80 °C; up to 70% at 70 °C with catechol).
For oxidation, crystallographic symmetry engineering in ordered Cu–Pt intermetallics supported on MgO enables base-free aerobic oxidation of HMF to FDCA with >97% yield at 40 °C and 1 bar O₂ under visible light. Mechanistic evidence supports a light-dominated pathway involving photoexcited holes and •O₂⁻, enabled redox cycling. Together, these findings outline a general blueprint for integrating light harvesting with selective biomass upgrading to FDCA under exceptionally mild conditions.