A Facile and Efficient Synthesis of 2-Imidazolines from Aldehydes Using Hydrogen Peroxide and Substoichiometric Sodium Iodide

The reaction of aldehydes with ethylenediamine for the preparation of 2-imidazolines has been studied using hydrogen peroxide as an oxidant in the presence of sodium iodide and anhydrous magnesium sulfate. A mild, green, and efficient method is established to carry out this reaction in high yield.