Cyclopentyl-methyl ether (CPME): Versatile eco-friendly solvent for applications in Biotechnology and Biorefineries.

The quest of sustainable solvents is currently matter of intense research and development, as solvents significantly contribute to the wastes generated by chemical industries. Cyclopentyl-methyl ether (CPME) is a promising eco-friendly solvent, because of its valuable properties such as low peroxide formation rate, stability at basic and acidic conditions, relatively high boiling point, etc. This review discusses the potential use of CPME for applications in Biotechnology (e.g. biotransformations, as solvent or co-solvent), Biorefineries and Bioeconomy (e.g. for furan synthesis, as extractive agent in Liquid-Liquid separations, etc.), as well as in other areas like chromatography or peptide synthesis. Albeit CPME is currently produced by petrochemical means with a remarkably high atom economy, its biogenic production can be envisaged from substrates like cyclopentanol or cyclopentanone, which can be derived from furfural or from (bio-based) adipic acid, respectively. The combination of the promising properties of CPME as (co)solvent with a future (economic) biogenic origin would be advantageous for setting strategies aligned with the Sustainable Chemistry principles.