Abstract: The liquefaction experiments were carried out using wheat straw as raw material, concentrated sulfuric acid as catalyst and ethanol as solvent. The composition of liquefied product was analyzed, and the effects of different conditions on conversion rate and yield of the target product ethyl levulinate (EL) were examined. The results showed that optimum liquefaction conditions was catalyst dosage 10%, reaction temperature 190℃, reaction time 60 min, and liquid solid ratio of 18:1 (g:g, the same below). Under the circumstances, the yield of EL was up to 18.11% with liquefaction ratio of 75%. Degradation of wheat straw during the reaction was confirmed by infrared spectroscopic analysis. The liquid product contained aldehydes, ketones, esters, phenols, acids, and some other oxygenates. It was found that cellulose was converted into intermediate, such as glucose, glucoside, ethoxymethyl furfural, et al. They can be further transformed into ethyl levulinate.