Recent progress in the development of biofuel 2,5-dimethylfuran.

2,5-Dimethylfuran (DMF), which is considered as a promising new generation of alternative fuel, has the potential to relieve the global fossil fuel shortage and air pollution problems. In the last 5 years, the preparation methods, applications, and the oxidation and combustion characteristics of DMF have been studied extensively. Findings have shown that DMF could be produced from renewable biomass in large scale through converting cellulose. DMF has many desirable characteristics that overcome the drawbacks of low-carbon alcohols such as ethanol and n-butyl alcohol. It can be directly used in spark ignition (SI) engine or used after mixing with gasoline. When mixing with diesel, it can be used in compression ignition (CI) engine and the emission of soot can be cut dramatically. Although significant achievements have been achieved so far, some remaining problems need to be researched. Those problems include but are not limited to technologies for large-scale commercial applications of DMF, methods for increasing loads of the oil supply system, ways to reduce the NOx emission from using DMF, and the detailed combustion mechanism of DMF. Especially, how to reduce the emission of small particles when fueling SI engines with DFM should be given the priority.