Cyclohexanone is the organic compound

Organic compound

An organic compound is any member of a large class of gaseous, liquid, or solid chemical compounds whose molecules contain carbon. For historical reasons discussed below, a few types of carbon-containing compounds such as carbides, carbonates, simple oxides of carbon, and cyanides, as well as the...

 with the formula

Chemical formula

A chemical formula or molecular formula is a way of expressing information about the atoms that constitute a particular chemical compound....

 (CH₂)₅CO. The molecule consists of six-carbon cyclic molecule

Alicyclic compound

An alicyclic compound is an organic compound that is both aliphatic and cyclic. They contain one or more all-carbon rings which may be either saturated or unsaturated, but do not have aromatic character...

 with a ketone

Ketone

In organic chemistry, a ketone is an organic compound with the structure RCR', where R and R' can be a variety of atoms and groups of atoms. It features a carbonyl group bonded to two other carbon atoms. Many ketones are known and many are of great importance in industry and in biology...

 functional group. This colorless oil has an odor reminiscent of peardrop sweets as well as acetone

Acetone

Acetone is the organic compound with the formula 2CO, a colorless, mobile, flammable liquid, the simplest example of the ketones.Acetone is miscible with water and serves as an important solvent in its own right, typically as the solvent of choice for cleaning purposes in the laboratory...

. Over time, samples assume a yellow color due to oxidation. Cyclohexanone is slightly soluble in water (5-10 g/100 mL), but miscible with common organic solvents. Billions of kilograms are produced annually, mainly as a precursor to nylon

Nylon

Nylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers known generically as polyamides, first produced on February 28, 1935, by Wallace Carothers at DuPont's research facility at the DuPont Experimental Station...

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Cyclohexanone is produced by the oxidation of cyclohexane

Cyclohexane

Cyclohexane is a cycloalkane with the molecular formula C6H12. Cyclohexane is used as a nonpolar solvent for the chemical industry, and also as a raw material for the industrial production of adipic acid and caprolactam, both of which being intermediates used in the production of nylon...

 in air, typically using cobalt catalysts:

C₆H₁₂ + O₂ → (CH₂)₅CO + H₂O

This process co-forms cyclohexanol

Cyclohexanol

Cyclohexanol is the organic compound with the formula 5CHOH. The molecule is related to cyclohexane ring by replacement of one hydrogen atom by a hydroxyl group. This compound exists as a deliquescent colorless solid, which, when very pure, melts near room temperature...

, and this mixture, called "KA oil" for ketone-alcohol oil, is the main feedstock for the production of adipic acid

Adipic acid

Adipic acid is the organic compound with the formula 42. From the industrial perspective, it is the most important dicarboxylic acid: About 2.5 billion kilograms of this white crystalline powder are produced annually, mainly as a precursor for the production of nylon...

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