Nanostructured Mesoporous Zinc-Incorporated Copper Oxide (NMZI-CuO): An Efficient and Reusable Nanocatalyst for the Oxidant-Free Synthesis of Quinoxalines through a Tandem Oxidation Process

Abstract

A nanostructured mesoporous zinc-incorporated copper oxide with different Cu/Zn molar ratios was prepared through a facile hydrothermal template-free route. Textural properties of prepared materials were studied with various techniques such as TEM, BET, XRD, FTIR, and XPS. The prepared mesoporous zinc-incorporated copper oxide was then successfully applied as a heterogeneous catalyst for the synthesis of quinoxaline derivatives from 1,2-diamines and α -hydroxy ketones through a tandem oxidation process (TOP) without any oxidant. Using this method all desired products were obtained with good to excellent yields in relatively short times under solvent-free conditions. The applied catalyst was simply isolated and reused several times without any detectable loss of catalytic activity.