An efficient, metal-free, room temperature aromatization of Hantzsch-1,4-dihydropyridines with urea–hydrogen peroxide adduct, catalyzed by molecular iodine

A mild, highly efficient and metal-free synthetic method for aromatization of 1,4-dihydropyridines employing urea–hydrogen peroxide adduct as oxidant catalyzed by 20 mol % of molecular iodine was developed. The reaction was carried out in ethyl acetate at room temperature and the products were isolated in high to excellent yields. A plausible free-radical mechanism is proposed based on results obtained with derivatives having alkyl and aryl substituents in the 1,4-dihydropyridine ring.