l-Proline catalyzed expeditious multicomponent protocol for the synthesis of fused N-substituted-2-pyridone derivatives in aqueous medium

N-substituted-2-pyridone derivatives have many pharmaceutical properties. In our research, we have developed an efficient, green, and multicomponent protocol to synthesize such new fused N-substituted-2-pyridone derivatives. Optimum reaction condition was obtained by employing l-proline as an organocatalyst in aqueous SDS solution at 100 °C. Various 1,3-diketones, including indane 1,3-dione with a range of aromatic and aliphatic amines were utilized to synthesize fused 2-pyridone derivatives. The isolation of a reaction intermediate confirmed our proposed mechanism. Water as a reaction medium improved the scope of the reaction methodology to a large extent.