Hydration of 2-Cyclohexen-1-one to 3-Hydroxycyclohexanone Using Solid Acid Catalysts

The hydration of 2-cyclohexen-1-one to 3-hydroxycyclohexanone was studied in the presence of solid acid catalysts such as cationexchange resins and zeolites. Amberlyst-36 was found to be the best choice among the several catalysts studied. The hydration was found to yield more than 99% selectivity toward the product under the reaction conditions specified in our study. The performance of Amberlyst-36 was studied under various reaction conditions, and the kinetic data obtained was fitted in a power law model, and the values of reaction rate constants and activation energy were determined.