Fe3O4/SiO2/(CH2)3N+Me3Br3– core–shell nanoparticles: An efficient catalyst for the synthesis of functionalized 5-oxo-hexahydroquinolines

The four-component Hantzsch condensation reaction of dimedone, ethyl acetoacetate, ammonium acetate, and various aromatic and aliphatic aldehydes in the presence of catalytic amount of a magnetic nanoparticle-supported tribromide, as a green catalyst, under solvent‐free conditions at 80 °C affords functionalized 5-oxo-hexahydroquinolines in good to excellent yields. The magnetic Fe3O4-SiO2-(CH2)3N+Me3Br3–, was characterized by infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectroscopy, transmission electron microscope (TEM) and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The method offers several advantages including high yields, short reaction time, simple work-up procedure and catalyst reusability for several runs. The catalyst could be readily separated by using a magnetic force and reused six times without any significant loss of catalytic activity.