Catalytic Beckmann Rearrangement of Cyclododecanone Oxime

Abstract

Abstract The catalytic Beckmann rearrangement of cyclododecanone oxime (CDOX) was investigated in silane–nitrile–solvent systems. We have found that chlorosilanes, such as trimethylchlorosilane and tetrachlorosilane, are effective catalysts to produce ω-laurolactam (LRL) at 100 °C. Tetrachlorosilane is the most active catalyst, and hydrocarbon solvents such as cyclohexane, hexane, and decane are suitable for the system. Nitriles such as acetonitrile and benzonitrile would play an important role as a remover of silane species from the produced LRL–silane salt.