Dsm N.v.

E.i. Dupont De Nemours and Company

E. I. Du Pont Nemours and Co.

Henricus F Wolters

Wim Buijs

Frank Edward Herkes

Nicolaas F Haasen

Samuel L Lane

Process for the preparation of a mixture of .epsilon.-caprolactam, 6-aminocaproic acid and 6-aminocaproic amide by heating an aqueous mixture containing ammonia and oligomers of 6-aminocaproic acid and/or of 6-aminocaproic amide, the aqueous mixture containing 0.5-7 wt. % of equivalent ammonia (calculated as NH.sub.3) and the temperature lying between 280.degree. C. and 330.degree. C., in which by 'equivalent ammonia' is meant free ammonia and ammonia present in the form of a terminal amide group of one of the compounds present in the aqueous mixture.

Process for the preparation of a mixture of .epsilon.-caprolactam,

Process for the preparation of .epsilon.-caprolactam starting from an aldehyde compound comprising at least one member from among 5-formylvaleric acid, ester or amide in which the aldehyde compound is allowed to react in the presence of ammonia and hydrogen and a subsequent cyclization of the reaction products thus formed (.epsilon.-caprolactam-precursors) to .epsilon.-caprolactam is performed in the presence of water, involved the combination of steps

Process for the preparation of E-caprolactam

A process for the preparation of .epsilon.-caprolactam and .epsilon.-caprolactam precursors, starting from the corresponding 5-formylvalerate ester, ammonia and hydrogen in the presence of a hydrogenation catalyst is disclosed, wherein in a step (a) 5-formylvalerate ester is reacted with ammonia under non-hydrogenating conditions, and in a step (b) the reaction product obtained in step (a) is converted to .epsilon.-caprolactam and the .epsilon.-caprolactam precursor(s) under hydrogenating conditions, in the presence of ammonia.

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Echt, Netherlands

Henricus F Wolters