Sulfur Catalyzed Metal- and Solvent-Free ABB'C Four-Component Synthesis of N-Arylidene-2-aryl-imidazo[1-2-a]azin-3-amines via Strecker Reaction

An efficient ABB'C four-component Strecker reaction between 2-aminopyridines, aromatic aldehydes and trimethylsilyl cyanide (TMSCN) was developed under metal- and solvent-free conditions to access N-arylidene-2-aryl-imidazo[1,2-a]azin-3-amines in high yields. This one-pot reaction was carried out in the presence of elemental sulfur as catalyst using readily available starting material at room temperature. The reaction was tolerant to several substituted 2-aminopyridines and aryl aldehydes and have good green chemistry metrics as compared to the reported methods.

Automated summary

An efficient ABB'C four-component Strecker reaction was developed under metal- and solvent-free conditions to access N-arylidene-2-aryl-imidazo[1,2-a]azin-3-amines in high yields. This one-pot reaction using elemental sulfur as catalyst showed good tolerance to various substrates and exhibited good green chemistry metrics compared to reported methods.