A simple and efficient synthesis of 12-aryl-8,9,10,12-tetrahydrobenzo[a]xanthen-11-ones by ZnO nanoparticles catalyzed three component coupling reaction of aldehydes, 2-naphthol and dimedone

Highly effective zinc oxide nanoparticles catalyzed solvent-free synthesis of some tetrahydrobenzo[a]xanthen-11-one derivatives via one-pot multi-component reaction of aldehydes, 2-naphthol and dimedone. The present approach creates a variety of biologically active heterocyclic compounds in excellent yields and short reaction times. Four new compounds are reported. The salient features of the ZnO nanoparticles are: easy preparation, cost-effective, high stability, low loading and reusability of the catalyst. The prepared zinc oxide nanoparticles were fully characterized by EDX, XRD, SEM, IR and TEM analysis.