Green Production Technology of the Monomer of Nylon-6: Caprolactam

After two decades’ endeavor, the Research Institute of Petroleum Processing (RIPP) has successfully developed a green caprolactam (CPL) production technology. This technology is based on the integration of titanium silicate (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 (Ni) catalyst with the magnetically stabilized bed reactor for the purification of caprolactam. The world’s first industrial plant based on this green CPL production technology has been built and possesses a capacity of 200 kt·a−1. Compared with existing technologies, the plant investment is pronouncedly reduced, and the nitrogen (N) atom utilization is drastically improved. The waste emission is reduced significantly; for example, no ammonium sulfate byproduct is produced. As a result, the price difference between CPL and benzene drops. In 2015, the capacity of the green CPL production technology reached 3 × 106 t·a−1, making China the world’s largest CPL producer, with a global market share exceeding 50%.