Patent ID: 8075642

Claim:
A method for preparing liquid fuel and chemical intermediates from biomass-derived oxygenated hydrocarbons, the method comprising: reacting in a single reactor an aqueous solution of a biomass-derived, water-soluble oxygenated hydrocarbon reactant, in the presence of a catalyst comprising a metal selected from the group consisting of Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Mo, Tc, Ru, Rh, Pd, Ag, W, Re, Os, Ir, Pt, and Au, at a weight hourly space velocity of at least 0.6 h −1 , at a temperature, and a pressure, and for a time sufficient to yield a self-separating, three-phase product stream comprising: a vapor phase; an organic phase comprising linear or cyclic mono-oxygenated hydrocarbons having from 4 to 6 carbon atoms and selected from the group consisting of alcohols, ketones, carboxylic acids, and 5- and 6-membered oxygen-containing heterocycles, and wherein molar carbon distribution for conversion of the water-soluble oxygenated hydrocarbon reactant into the organic phase is at least 43%; and an aqueous phase.