Preparation and Catalytic Performance of Sulfonated Carbon-Based Solid Acid

Sulfonated carbon-based solid acids were prepared by sulfonation of incompletely carbonized sucrose, and their catalytic properties in the alkylation of hydroquinone and the hydrolysis of ethyl acetate were investigated. These solid acids exhibited high activity for both reactions, in which the conversion of hydroquinone and yield of 2-tert-butylhydroquinone reached 91% and 60%, respectively, at 150 degrees C for 4 h, while the conversion of ethyl acetate reached 94% at 60 degrees C for 12 h. However, the stability of the solid acids was poor, especially in the alkylation of hydroquinone, where the conversion dropped from 91% to 62% after the first run. The characterization results of acidity measurement and IR and UV-Vis spectroscopy indicate that the deactivation is probably due to the leaching of sulfonic group from the surface of the catalyst. The effect of the reaction temperature and the type of solvent were also investigated, showing that these solid acids are more stable in the aqueous solution or non-polar solvent at low temperature. The deactivated catalysts can be regenerated by resulfonation and their catalytic activity can be fully restored.