Mesoporous N-doped carbonaceous materials were synthesized by a one-pot hydrothermal method via adding ethylenediamine into aqueous glucose solutions. The resulting materials were characterized using transmission electronic microscopy, scanning electronic microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and N2 adsorption–desorption measurements. The results indicated that this method of N-doping dramatically converted the conventional microporous carbon spheres into completely different net-cross structures with mesoporous characteristics, enlarged pore volume and specific surface area. Furthermore, N-doping led to the uniform dispersion of loaded Pt nanoparticles on the surface of the carbonaceous materials, which exhibited higher catalytic activity than the N-free counterparts in p-nitrophenol reduction.
