One pot three component solvent free synthesis of N-substituted tetrazoles using RuO2 /MMT catalyst

Abstract

A facile, one-pot three component catalytic method is developed for the synthesis of N-substituted tetrazole using RuO2/MMT nanocomposite. It is characterized with low and wide angle XRD which suggests that RuO2 nanoparticles are evenly dispersed on the surface of MMT while FESEM images indicate a spherical morphology having size in the range of 40-50 nm. The catalytic efficiency is evaluated for three component one-pot synthesis of the tetrazole using various amine, sodium azide and triethyl-ortho-formate under solvent free condition. This strategy has resulted in good to excellent yields (84 – 97%) of N-substituted tetrazoles within moderate reaction time. Moreover, the catalyst possesses excellent reusability up to five cycles with only 5% decrease in the yield of tetrazole after 5th cycle. The beneficial catalytic activity of the bifunctional nanocomposite is attributed to the uniformly dispersed RuO2 nanoparticles on the surface of MMT where RuO2 site is responsible for coordination of isocyanide intermediate while strong acidic character of MMT induces condensation and cyclization steps in a synergic manner. Thus, it can be argued that RuO2/MMT nanocomposite possesses potential applications for Multi Component Reactions (MCR) in terms of efficient and sustainable manner.