Oxoammonium salt mediated conversion of cyclohexylamine toward cyclohexanone with water as the oxygen source

Cyclohexylamine is a key byproduct during the production of cyclohexanone oxime, which is an important bulk chemical in material industry. Here we report a highly efficient approach to oxidize cyclohexylamine toward cyclohexanone with oxoammonium salt as the oxidant and water as the oxygen source, which has non-involvement of metal catalyst. The obtained cyclohexanone is an important raw material for both cyclohexanone oxime and adipic acid production. On basis of control experiments, mass spectrometry, and product analysis, the essential role of water as oxygen source and the reaction mechanism were elucidated. Moreover, the recycling of the oxoammonium salt succeeded to convert another proportion of the substrate. These findings offer new insights and methods for the oxidative conversion of cyclohexylamine.