Arginine-Functionalized Magnetic Natural Phosphate Used as Recyclable Catalyst for 1,4-Dihydropyridine Synthesis

Researchers have synthesized a magnetic natural phosphate functionalized with arginine, known as MNP-Arg, that efficiently catalyzes the production of 1,4-dihydropyridines under mild conditions. The MNP-Arg catalyst was fully characterized using FTIR, XRD, XRF, SEM/EDS, VSM, and elemental analysis.

Characterization confirmed the successful functionalization and magnetic behavior of the MNP-Arg catalyst.

NP stands for natural phosphate, while MNP stands for magnetic natural phosphate and MNP-Arg stands for magnetic natural phosphate modified with arginine. MNP-Arg catalyzed the synthesis of 1,4-dihydropyridines, abbreviated as 1,4-DHPs, in ethanol at room temperature. The catalytic reaction used mild conditions.

The MNP-Arg catalyst afforded diverse 1,4-dihydropyridine products in 86–98% yield. The catalytic synthesis reactions were completed within 10–20 minutes using only 20 mg of MNP-Arg catalyst. FTIR stands for Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, XRD stands for X-ray diffraction, SEM stands for scanning electron microscopy, EDS stands for energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, XRF stands for X-ray fluorescence, and VSM stands for vibrating sample magnetometer.

DLS stands for dynamic light scattering. The MNP-Arg catalyst was recoverable by magnetic separation and maintained activity for nine consecutive cycles. The catalyst demonstrated high efficiency, recyclability, and improved environmental compatibility.

The research received partial support from the South Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University of Iran. Funding was not applicable. Zahra Lasemi is the corresponding author.