Catalytic conversion of corncob pretreatment hydrolysate and raw corncob into furfural in a modified biphasic system by SO42/SnO2 MMT solid catalyst has been developed. The influence of the organic solvent type, organic to water phase ratio, sodium chloride concentration, reaction temperature and time on the furfural production were comparatively evaluated. The results showed that furfural yields of 81.7% and 66.1% were achieved at 190 degrees C for 15 mins and 190 degrees C for 20 mins, respectively, for corncob pretreatment hydrolysate and raw corncob by this solid catalyst. The solid catalyst used in this study exhibited good stability and high efficiency applied in the modified biphasic system in addition to excellent recyclability. The proposed catalytic system displayed high performance for catalytic conversion of lignocellulosic biomass into important platform chemicals and has great potential in industrial application. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.