Production of 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural from Fructose Catalyzed by Sulfonated Bamboo-Derived Carbon Prepared by Simultaneous Carbonization and Sulfonation

A novel sulfonated bamboo-derived carbon (SBC) was prepared through a one-pot simultaneous carbonization and sulfonation method using p-toluenesulfonic acid as the sulfonating agent. This method was used in place of the two-step method of high temperature carbonization followed by sulfonation, in order to reduce energy consumption and avoid the use of substantial amounts of strong liquid acid. The as-prepared catalyst bearing SO3H, COOH, and phenolic OH groups demonstrated efficient catalytic activity in the dehydration of fructose to 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), achieving 92.1% HMF yield in a mixture of tetrahydrofuran (THF) and dimethylsulfoxiden (DMSO) (volume ratio of THF/DMSO 3/7). The mixture had a fructose concentration of 0.08 g·mL-1 with a catalyst amount of 10% weight of fructose at 140 °C in 60 min. No distinct activity drop was observed after the initial deactivation during 5 recycling runs, confirming a good stability of the prepared catalyst. Moreover, kinetic data showed that SBC promoted fructose dehydration to HMF may follow pseudo-first order kinetics with the activation energy of 43.6 kJ·mol-1 under investigated conditions. The convenient catalyst preparation method and excellent catalytic performance of the catalyst provide an easy-handling and eco-friendly strategy for crude biomass utilization in catalyst production