Quinoline synthesis by improved Skraup-Doebner-Von Miller reactions utilizing acrolein diethyl acetal

A robust synthetic method has been developed as an improvement to the venerable Skraup-Doebner-Von Miller reaction providing access to various quinoline products. The straightforward procedure utilizes acrolein diethyl acetal as a three-carbon annulation partner with aniline substrates in a monophasic, organic solvent-free reaction medium. Differentially substituted aniline precursors were found to be compatible with the reaction conditions and the corresponding quinoline products are isolated in moderate to good yields.