This invention discloses a method for preparing 1,2,3,6-tetrahydrophthalimide, comprising the following steps: using cis-1,2,3,6-tetrahydrophthalic anhydride as the reaction substrate and a gradient-release composite
ammonia source as the
ammonia donor, a cyclization reaction is carried out in an
ionic liquid reaction system to obtain a crude reaction solution containing 1,2,3,6-tetrahydrophthalimide; the obtained crude reaction solution is cooled to crystallize,
solid-liquid separation is performed, and
drying is carried out to obtain 1,2,3,6-tetrahydrophthalimide; the
ionic liquid reaction system uses an
imidazole-based
ionic liquid as the main reaction medium; the gradient-release composite
ammonia source is composed of a first ammonia source and
ammonium acetate; the preparation method provided by this invention, through the buffering effect of the gradient-release composite ammonia source combined with the
imidazole-based ionic liquid, combined with a segmented temperature-controlled
reaction scheme, matches the ammonia consumption requirements at different stages of the cyclization reaction, effectively suppresses the carbon-carbon
double bond polymerization side reaction, reduces
impurity generation, and significantly improves the yield and purity of the product.