Microwave-assisted hydrolysis of crystalline cellulose catalyzed by biomass char sulfonic acids

The development of an environmentally benign process for the hydrolysis of cellulose into reducing sugars can be one of the key technologies for making full use of cellulosic biomass in the future. Here, a biomass char sulfonic acid (BC-SO3H)-catalyzed hydrolysis of cellulose in water was achieved under microwave irradiation. The BC-SO3H catalysts prepared cheaply from natural bamboo, cotton and starch, showed a much higher turnover number (TON, 1.33-1.73) for this reaction compared to a dilute H2SO4 solution (TON, 0.02), which was likely due to their strong affinity to beta-1,4-glycosidic bonds of cellulose. In addition, microwave irradiation played key roles in activating cellulose molecules and strengthening particle collision, which can lead to a remarkable acceleration effect on this heterogeneously catalytic process.