Synthesis of benzimidazoles/benzothiazoles by using recyclable,magnetically separable nano-Fe2O3 in aqueous medium

An efficient, simple, ecofriendly and cost-effective method has been developed for the synthesis of benzimidazole/benzothiazole derivatives by a two-component reaction, involving 1,2-diamino benzene/2-amino thiophenol and substituted aromatic aldehydes using recyclable nano-Fe₂O₃ catalyst (10 mol%) in water afforded with excellent yields (75–85%). The most important feature of this protocol is short reaction times, high yields, aqueous reaction medium, efficient recycling and high stability of the catalyst.