Electrochemical Ruthenium‐Catalyzed C8‐Regioselective Aroylation of Quinoline N‐Oxides with Aryl α‐Ketoacids

Abstract

AbstractAn electrochemical method with high faradaic efficiency was developed for the ruthenium‐catalyzed C8‐regioselective aroylation of quinoline N‐oxides under oxidant‐free conditions by using aryl α‐ketoacids as the aroylation reagent. A series of 8‐aroylquinoline N‐oxides were effectively synthesized in moderate‐to‐excellent yields. Furthermore, the proposed method was successfully applied to the gram‐scale synthesis of a tubulin polymerization inhibitor. Additionally, a plausible reaction mechanism for the decarboxylation radical acylation was proposed on the basis of the results of cyclic voltammetry and control experiments. Overall, this method provides a novel solution for the C8‐regioselective aroylation of quinoline N‐oxides.