Green synthesis and characterization of supported gold nanoparticles (Au@PS) from Schisandra chinensis fruit extract: An efficient and reusable catalyst for the synthesis of chromeno[2,3-d]pyrimidin-2-yl)phenol derivatives under solvent-free conditions

Abstract We have demonstrated a simple, green, and environmentally friendly approach for the synthesis of polystyrene-supported gold (Au@PS) nanoparticles by using Schisandra chinensis fruit extract through a novel chemical route. The prepared Au@PS NPs have been well characterized by UV–visible, SEM, TEM, XRD, DLS, and EDX studies. Further, the obtained Au@PS NPs were used as an effective and reusable heterogeneous catalyst for the synthesis of chromeno[2,3- d ]pyrimidin-2-yl)phenol derivatives by one-pot pseudo four-component reaction of 2-hydroxybenzaldehydes, secondary amines, and malononitrile under solvent-free reaction conditions. The notable features of this “green” reaction are good to excellent yields, shorter reaction times, avoidance of toxic solvents, gram-scale synthesis, and substrate diversity. The main advantages of Au@PS NPs are its catalytic activity, easy recovery, and reusability for five consecutive runs without any apparent loss in its catalytic activity.