Oxalic acid dihydrate catalyzed synthesis of 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2-(1H)-one derivatives under thermal and solvent-free conditions

Oxalic acid dihydrate as a green, mild and efficient catalyst for the one-pot three-component Biginelli synthesis of 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2-(1H)-one derivatives from the reaction between β-keto esters (methyl or ethyl acetoacetate), aromatic aldehyde (benzaldehye derivatives) and urea or thiourea under thermal and solvent-free conditions with excellent yields and short reaction time is studied. The most remarkable benefits of this synthetic method include the green methodology, an eco-friendly, inexpensive and non-toxic catalyst, solvent-free conditions, the availability of materials, and a simple operational procedure with no column chromatographic separation. The products were characterized by melting points, IR and 1H NMR spectroscopy.