Development of a solid catalyst for self-condensation of cyclohexanone

A novel solid catalyst(CC-1) for self-condensation reaction of cyclohexanone were developed.Compared with conventional concentrated sulfuric acid catalyst,CC-1 featured much higher selectivity and easier operation.Different water-carrying agents(cyclohexane,n-heptane and toluene) were investigated and n-heptane with quantity of 50 mL had the best results,with conversion of 87.5% and selectivity of 97.9%.Studies on the reaction mechanism for self-condensation of cyclohexanone over CC-1 catalyst indicated that the reaction was a typical consecutive reaction.Regeneration of CC-1 catalyst showed that CC-1 had excellent regenerability,which could be regenerated for least 8 times with conversion and selectivity maintained at 85% and 96%,respectively.