Cellobiose dehydration

In the earlier literature, jS-D-glucose (3) was considered to be an intermediate compound which, on subsequent dehydration, provides levoglucosan. Experimental evidence against this theory has been adduced by Golova and associates, who obtained small yields of levoglucosan from jS-D-glucose and from cellobiose, as compared to a 54—60% yield from cellulose. 

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