Influence of oxygen-containing functional groups on the surface of carbon materials on liquid-phase oxidation of cumene

Carbon materials are extensively employed in chemical production for the selective oxidation of aromatics. In this study, the activated carbon nanomaterial catalyst significantly enhanced the oxidation reaction efficiency of cumene while promoting the high conversion of cumene peroxide (CHP) to 2-phenyl-2-propanol (PP). The carbon synthesised from furfural residue (C-F) achieved a 39.48% cumene conversion and 54.95% PP selectivity, representing the most outstanding catalytic performance among all catalysts studied. The structural characteristics of the synthesised catalyst were systematically analysed using TEM, XPS, BET, and Raman spectroscopy. Furthermore, comparative experiments confirmed that oxygen-containing functional groups on the activated carbon surface inhibit the oxidation reaction of cumene. Mechanistic studies indicate that the decomposition of CHP constitutes a key step in the oxidation process of cumene.