FeCl3-Catalyzed Condensation of 2-Naphthol and Aldehydes under Solvent-Free Reaction Conditions: An Efficient and Green Alternative for the Synthesis of 14-Aryl(Alkyl)-14-H-dibenzo[a, j]xanthenes

An iron-catalyzed condensation of 2-naphthol with aldehydes has been described. In the presence of a catalytic amount of iron(III) chloride (5 mol%), the condensation reaction of 2-naphthol and aldehydes underwent smoothly to generate the corresponding products in good to excellent yields under base-, acid-, ligand-, additive-, and solvent-free reaction conditions.