One-step synthesis of carbon functionalized with sulfonic acid groups using hydrothermal carbonization

Carbon functionalized with sulfonic acid groups has been synthesized using the one-step hydrothermal carbonization of furaldehyde and hydroxyethylsulfonic acid aqueous solution at 180 °C for 4 h. The carbon exhibited high acidity and comparable activities to sulfuric acid for the traditional acid-catalyzed reactions, which indicated that it has great potential for environment-friendly processes. The copolymerization method provides an efficient procedure for the synthesis of various functionalized carbons by one-step hydrothermal carbonization.