Catalytic synthesis of N-alkylacrylamide from acrylonitrile and 1-adamantanol with a novel solid heteropoly compound

Catalytic synthesis of N-adamantylacrylamide from acrylonitrile and 1-adamantanol has been studied over various solid and liquid acids. Solid acids such as Cs_2.5H_0.5PW₁₂O₄₀, Amberlyst 15, Nafion, and Nafion–SiO₂ composite gave yields higher than 97% at 373 K, and were superior in yield to liquid acids like p-toluenesulfonic acid, H₃PW₁₂O₄₀, and H₂SO₄. It was further demonstrated that Cs_2.5H_0.5PW₁₂O₄₀ exhibited the highest catalytic performance for this reaction in the presence of excess water. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.