Acid-functionalized mesoporous carbons for the continuous production of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural

The stability of solid acid catalysts is essential in the development of sustainable biomass conversion processes. In this report we study the activity and stability of acid-functionalized periodic mesoporous carbons (CMK-3 and CMK-5) for the continuous production of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural from fructose. The acid-functionalized mesoporous carbon catalysts show comparable selectivities and turnover frequency (TOF) to that of propylsulfonic acid functionalized SBA-15. However, the first-order deactivation rate coefficient of the carbon-based materials are up to 60 times more stable than that for the acid-functionalized SBA-15 catalyst and up to 3 times more stable than commercial Nafion SAC-13. Of the catalysts studied, phenylsulfonic acid CMK-5 showed both the highest TOF for HMF production and lowest deactivation rate coefficient.