A mixture of 5-(2-chlorophenyl)-1-[2-(4-methylphenylsulfonyl)hydrazino]cyclohexen-3-one (1.35 g), anhydrous potassium carbonate (1.19 g), 2-bromoacetophenone (0.893 g) and methanol (30 ml) was stirred at 80° C. for 3 hours. Under reduced pressure, the solvent was evaporated, and the residue was extracted with ethyl acetate. The organic layer was concentrated, and the residue was purified with silica gel column chromatography to give 7-(2-chlorophenyl)-4-phenyl-5,6,7,8-tetrahydrocinnolin-5-one (0.46 g) as oil.
