H-beta zeolite catalysed synthesis of N-benzylbenzamide from benzonitrile and benzyl alcohol

Amides have been synthesized from the reaction of alcohols with various nitriles using a heterogeneous H-beta zeolite catalyst with 91% isolated yield. The H-beta zeolite can be easily separable and recycled several times without considerable loss of its catalytic activity. The scale up trial on 1 g (benzyl alcohol) batch is reported under the optimized reaction condition.