Synthesis and production[edit]
Caprolactam was first described in the late 1800s when it was prepared by the cyclization of ε-aminocaproic acid, the product of the hydrolysis of caprolactam. Given the commercial significance of Nylon-6, many methods have been developed for the production of caprolactam. Most of the caprolactam is synthesised from cyclohexanone (1), which is first converted to its oxime (2). Treatment of this oxime with acid induces the Beckmann rearrangement to give caprolactam (3):