In various embodiments, the present invention can involve a method of
synthesizing .alpha.-amino-.epsilon.-caprolactam. The method can comprise
heating a salt of L-lysine in a solvent comprising an alcohol. In other
embodiments, the present invention can involve methods for synthesizing
.epsilon.-caprolactam. The methods can comprise heating a salt of
L-lysine in a solvent comprising an alcohol and deaminating the reaction
product. In various embodiments, the invention can include methods of
converting biomass into nylon 6. The methods can comprise heating
L-lysine in a solvent comprising an alcohol to produce
.alpha.-amino-.epsilon.-caprolactam, deaminating to produce
.epsilon.-caprolactam and polymerizing into nylon 6, wherein the L-lysine
is derived from the biomass. In other embodiments, the present invention
can include methods of making nylon 6. The methods can comprise
synthesizing .epsilon.-caprolactam and then polymerizing, wherein the
.epsilon.-caprolactam is derived from L-lysine.