Valorizing natural-abundant glucose to lactic acid using a MOF-808 catalyst under green hydrothermal conditions.

Highly robust Zr-based MOF-808, featuring Lewis acid Zr sites and coordinate hydroxide ions upon the removal of the monocarboxylate capping reagent, emerges as an efficient catalyst for the hydrothermal conversion of glucose into lactic acid. A remarkable 99% glucose conversion with an impressive 76.6% yield of lactic acid can be achieved. The large pore window of MOF-808 facilitates the diffusion of glucose to the active sites within the framework. The single-site attribute of the catalytic center enables a high selectivity of lactic acid over the competitive product, 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural, under hydrothermal reaction conditions.