Fe3O4@PEG Core-Shell Nanosphere Anchored and Stabilized by Nickel Complex on Murexide: Green Synthesized Nanocatalyst with Super Catalytic Activity for Synthesize of Benzothiazole Derivatives

Abstract

The recent advances in the green-based design and synthesis of core-shell nanostructures have always been an intriguing arena to scientists due to their compelling application in catalytic fields. This work designed and synthesized a new core-shell nanosphere based on Fe₃O₄ as a novel, heterogeneous, reusable, efficient, and green catalyst to synthesize benzothiazole derivatives under ultrasonic irradiation. To achieve this goal, initially, fabricated Fe₃O₄ magnetic nanoparticles via the co-operation method were synthesized as a core, followed by coating with polyethylene glycol (PEG-400). Subsequently, Ni@Murexide complex supported on magnetic nanoparticles is successfully synthesized and reported, modified using 3-chloropropyltriethoxysilane (CPTES) and Murexide (MX) ligand in the Fe₃O₄@PEG support. The obtained structure of Fe₃O₄@PEG/MX/Ni was characterized by different analyses such as FT-IR, SEM, EDS, TEM, ICP-OES, XRD, VSM, and TGA. The results illustrated the effect of ultrasonic irradiation and the high efficacy of Murexide as a ligand in catalyzing the formation of benzothiazole derivatives and confirming the findings from the reaction of different derivatives of aromatic aldehyde with electron-withdrawing/donor groups with 2-amino thiophenol through a one-pot process in 10 min under ultrasonic irradiation which shows the non-sensitivity of the process to electronic effects. Furthermore, Fe₃O₄@PEG/MX@Ni showed great use at least six times with no significant loss in catalyst activity.