Phthalhydrazide immobilized on MCM-41 as a potent and recoverable catalyst for the synthesis of pyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinolines

We present a study on the synthesis, characterization, and application of phthalhydrazide-functionalized MCM-41 (P-MCM-41) as a novel and efficient heterogeneous basic catalyst. The described catalyst was fully characterized via various techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR). P-MCM-41 efficiently catalyzed the four-component reaction of arylaldehydes, Meldrum's acid, alkyl isocyanides, and isoquinoline in CHCl3 to prepare pyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinolines in good yields.