Cobalt(III) catalyzed C-8 selective C–H and C–O coupling of quinoline N-oxide with internal alkynes via C–H activation and oxygen atom transfer

An efficient, scalable, atom-economical, regio-selective air stable Cp*Co(III) catalyzed C–H and C–O coupling via a C–H activation/oxygen atom transfer reaction of quinoline N-oxide and an internal alkyne is reported. Such a catalytic transformation is witnessed for the first time with a cobalt catalyst and using N-oxide as a traceless directing group, in contrast to the existing literature. The developed synthetic methodology is straightforward and possesses various functional group tolerances, including heterocycles.