Synthesis of 2-hydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone derivatives via a three-component reaction catalyzed by nanoporous MCM-41

•A green procedure was developed for the one-pot synthesis of naphthalene-1,4-diones.•The multicomponent reaction gave good to excellent yields from simple precursors.•The protocol includes important aspects like easy workup procedure and high atom economy.•An efficient and reusable nanocatalyst was introduced.

A one-pot procedure for synthesis of hydroxyl naphthalene-1,4-dione derivatives via a three-component reaction of 2-hydroxynaphthalene-1,4-dione, aromatic aldehydes and heterocyclic or carbocyclic amines is developed. MCM-41 nanoporous catalyst is effective, easy recovery, reusable and makes work-up easy. This approach is clean and environmentally friendly. The structures of the new compounds were confirmed by FT-IR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR, and elemental analysis.

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