Recyclable iron(ii) caffeine-derived ionic salt catalyst in the Diels-Alder reaction of cyclopentadiene and α,β-unsaturated N-acyl-oxazolidinones in dimethyl carbonate

Iron(ii) triflate was used in combination with caffeine-derived salts as recyclable catalysts for the Diels-Alder reaction run in dimethyl carbonate (DMC) as a green solvent. The catalyst was prepared as an ionic salt from a xanthinium salt and Fe(OTf)(2). Various substrates including alpha,beta-unsaturated carbonyl and N-acyloxazolidinone derivatives were reacted with cyclopentadiene using this recyclable catalyst. The use of a low catalyst loading (1 mol%) afforded high yields (up to 99%) of the corresponding cycloadducts. The recycling and the efficiency of the catalyst were demonstrated for several runs.