Synthesis of bis-benzoquinoline derivatives catalyzed by iodine via ring-opening of furan

A three-component reaction of aromatic aldehyde, naphthalene-2-amine, and tetrahydro-2,5-dimethoxyfuran in methanol catalyzed by iodine, is described in this paper. With the ring-opening of furan, a series of 3-aryl-2-(3-arylbenzo[f]quinolin-2-yl)benzo[f]quinoline derivatives were obtained in moderate yields.