Abstract: After 30 years of continuous innovation, SINOPEC Research Institute of Petroleum Processing Co., Ltd. has successfully developed green production technology for nylon-6 monomer caprolactam, it included a new green synthesis pathway for cyclohexanone by cyclohexene esterification and hydrogenation, the integration of hollow TS-1 zeolite with the slurry-bed reactor for the ammoximation of cyclohexanone, the integration of silicalite-1 zeolite with the moving-bed reactor for the gas-phase rearrangement of cyclohexanone oxime and the integration of an amorphous nickel catalyst with the magnetically stabilized bed reactor for the purification of caprolactam. Compared with the import technology of caprolactam production, the utilization rate of carbon atom and nitrogen atom were obviously increased, the emission of “three wastes” was significantly reduced, no low-value by-product ammonium sulfate was produced, the investment of the plant was greatly reduced, and the production cost was obviously reduced.

Key words: caprolactam, cyclohexanone, Beckmann rearrangement, amorphous nickel, magnetically stabilized bed reactor