An improved procedure for synthesis of some new 1,3-diaryl-2-propen-1-ones using PEG-400 as a recyclable solvent and their antimicrobial evaluation.

A simple and convenient route is described for the synthesis of novel hetero 1,3-diaryl-2-propen-1-ones (chalcones) by using recyclable PEG-400 as an alternative reaction solvent. The reaction is clean with excellent yield, shorter reaction time and reduces the use of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). All the synthesized compounds were evaluated for their antimicrobial activities against several pathogenic representatives.