Magnetic halloysite: an envirmental nanocatalyst for the synthesis of benzoimidazoles

A great amount of clay minerals are existed in soils and weathered rocks that encompasses unique properties and wide applications due to their nanoscale structures. Because of being biocompatible and cheap in nature, halloysite has been considered a new generation of nanostructures in material science and technology. Halloysite has a structural formula of Al₂(OH)₄Si₂O₅.nH₂O and Nanocomposites based on halloysite are applied extensively in several industrial and manufacturing processes. High surface area of halloysite is leading to be a good host for immobilizing metals to enhance their catalytic activity.  Magnetic nanocomposite based on Fe₃O₄ possesses unique features such as low cost, easy preparation, environmental compatibility. As a result of the above cited remarkable properties of heterogeneous Fe₃O₄@halloysite nanocatalyst and due to the importance of benzoimidazole scaffold, we represent an efficient synthesis of benzoimidazole derivatives via a green one-pot reaction using magnetic nanoclay as catalyst at room temperature in a green solvent.