Synthesis and Photocleavage of Quinoline Methyl Ethers: A Mild and Efficient Method for the Selective Protection and Deprotection of the Alcohol Functionality

The synthesis and photocleavage of quinolinyl methyl ether-protected alcohols is reported in this study. A variety of quinoline methyl chlorides were synthesized, and protection of the various alcohols was performed via a substitution reaction in the presence of a strong base. Photocleavage of the quinolinyl methyl ether moiety proceeded under visible light with the formation of the charged quinolinyl radical intermediate through a single-electron transfer in the presence of a photosensitizer dye leading to the deprotected alcohol in excellent yields. The utility of triethylamine as a sacrificial reductant and d-sorbitol as a radical scavenger were also investigated in this study.