A biomass-based catalyst with amine groups (–NH₂), viz., amine-functionalized sugarcane bagasse (SCB-NH₂), was prepared through the amination of sugarcane bagasse (SCB) in a two-step process. The physicochemical properties of the catalyst were characterized through FT-IR, elemental analysis, XRD, TG, and SEM-EDX techniques, which confirmed the –NH₂ group was grafted onto SCB successfully. The catalytic performance of SCB-NH₂ in Knoevenagel condensation reaction was tested in the batch and continuous flow reactions. Significantly, it was found that the catalytic performance of SCB-NH₂ is better in flow system than that in batch system. Moreover, the SCB-NH₂ presented an excellent catalytic activity and stability at the high flow rate. When the flow rate is at the 1.5 mL/min, no obvious deactivation was observed and the product yield and selectivity are more than 97% and 99% after 80 h of continuous reaction time, respectively. After the recovery of solvent from the resulting solution, a white solid was obtained as a target product. As a result, the SCB-NH₂ is a promising catalyst for the synthesis of fine chemicals by Knoevenagel condensation reaction in large scale, and the modification of the renewable SCB with –NH₂ group is a potential avenue for the preparation of amine-functionalized catalytic materials in industry.

A series of chloro-functionalized ionic liquids (CFILs) with chlorine groups (–Cl) on cations and chloride anions (Cl-) were synthesized and used as the promotion reagents for the selective conversion of cellulose into levulinic acid (LA) with the co-product of formic acid (FA). The co-operation between cations and anions of CFILs was investigated intensively through the variation of the structure of cations and the addition of salts with different anions. 3-(3-chloropropyl)-1-methyl-imidazolium chloride (IL-3) was the most appropriate additive, achieving up to 4.2%, 52.6%, and 58.7% of glucose, LA, and FA yields at 83.5% of cellulose conversion, respectively.