Green fabrication of ferromagnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles and their novel catalytic applications for the synthesis of biologically interesting benzoxazinone and benzthioxazinone derivatives

This paper demonstrates a novel and green approach for the synthesis of Fe3O4 nanoparticles using the leaf extract of Artemisia annua (A. annua), which is widely distributed in Asia as a medicinal plant. The formation of Fe3O4 nanoparticles was observed by UV-Vis spectroscopy. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). TEM analysis of Fe3O4 nanoparticles showed that they were spherical in shape with an average size of 6 nm. The synthesized Fe3O4 nanoparticles were used as a catalyst for the preparation of biologically interesting benzoxazinone and benzthioxazinone derivatives in high yields. These results showed that the synthesized Fe3O4 nanoparticles could be used as a catalyst in organic synthesis.