Glycerol as a green solvent for efficient, one-pot and catalyst free synthesis of 2,4,5-triaryl and 1,2,4,5-tetraaryl imidazole derivatives

A simple, efficient and catalyst-free method has been developed for the synthesis of 2,4,5-triaryl and 1,2,4,5-tetraaryl imidazole derivatives in glycerol as green solvent at 90 °C. It is noteworthy that in this protocol the yields of products were comparable to or better than, those in conventional media. The use of green reaction media makes this methodology simple, safe and cost-effective.