General
- Caprolactam is an
organic compound which is a lactam of 6-aminohexanoic acid (e-aminohexanoic
acid, aminocaproic acid).
- Caprolactam is
produced as clear liquid form and as a crystalline form.
- Caprolactam occurs as
white, hygroscopic flakes or crystals with a distinctive odour.
- Caprolactam is soluble
in water, cyclohexane, chlorinated hydrocarbons.
Process
- There are several
different processes for producing caprolactam[1, 2], such as the
DSM/HPO method, BASF-NO reduction method, and the SNIA toluene
method.
- Caprolactam is mostly
produced from benzene through three intermediates; cyclohexane,
cyclohexanone and cyclohexanone oxime.
- Most of the
caprolactam is synthesised from cyclohexanone via an oximation
process using hydroxylammonium sulfate followed by catalytic
rearrangement using the Beckmann rearrangement process step.
- The recovery process
of caprolactam from the reaction mixture starts with
neutralization, which results in the formation of a crude
caprolactam top phase and an aqueous ammonium sulfate layer.
- The crude caprolactam
layer is extracted with an organic solvent in the so-called
forward extraction, which is followed by back-extraction with
water.
Uses
- The primary industrial
use of caprolactam is as a monomer in the production of nylon-6.
- Caprolactam is a raw
material (monomer) for the polyamide-6 production with a wide
application in the artificial fibre industry as well as a
structural material in the motorization and electrotechnics
industry.
- Small amounts of
caprolactam are also used in cross-linking for polyurethanes and
in the synthesis of lysine.
Technology
- Anionic polymerization
of e-caprolactam (CL) in an organic solvent is to obtain
functional polyamide-6 nanoparticles in miniemulsion technique.
- The Polymerisation of
Caprolactam together with tha catalyst and stabilizer was
preferably carried out in a one stage technology using VK tube
reactor.
- Conventional
caprolactam technology is based on the key intermediate
cyclohexanone, which is usually produced by the oxidation of
cyclohexane, but can also be made from phenol or toluene.
Market
- The nylon fibres
market is mature at around 1%/year growth while demand for
engineering resins is much more robust at 4-5%/year. Overall
long-term global growth for caprolactam is estimated in the range
of 2-2.5%/year.
- Global trade in
caprolactam will decrease as Asia becomes more self-sufficient.
- The long-term average
caprolactam market price is used as the yardstick for evaluating
and comparing the economic feasibility of building a new
production plant.
- The outlook for the
caprolactam industry is about average for a mature commodity
chemical in the recovering economy.
- China is expected to
continue to be an importer of caprolactam. China is expected to be
able to produce 660,000 tonnes/year but with demand estimated at
1.0-1.1m tonnes, imports of 400,000-500,000 tonnes will still be
needed.
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