One-pot preparation of sulfonated ordered mesoporous carbon and its catalytic performance

Sulfonated ordered mesoporous carbon (SOMC) was directly prepared by a one-pot method, using sulfonated phenolic resin as precursor and a triblock copolymer (pluronic F-127) as a soft template using low carbonization temperatures (500-600℃). The structure and morphology of the SOMC were characterized by FT-IR, XRD, TEM and nitrogen adsorption. The catalytic performance was investigated using acetalization between benzaldehyde and trimethylorthoformate as a model reaction. Results showed that the SOMC has a well-ordered structure, a high surface area and uniform mesopores when the mass ratio of phenolic resin: sulfuric acid: F127 was 1∶2∶0.3 and carbonization temperature was 600℃. The acetal yield could reach 87.1% under catalysis using the SOMC, which is much higher than that obtained with a traditional solid acid catalyst and un-sulfonated mesoporous carbons.