Rh-Catalyzedand Self-Directed Aromatic C–HActivation of Enaminones to Divergent Alkenylated and Annulated Compounds

By means of simple Rh catalysis, the direct activation of the <i>ortho</i>-C–H bond in aryl enaminones has been realized with the enaminone structure as a traceless directing fragment. The products resulting from C–H alkenylation and further annulation via intramolecular C–H bond addition could be accessed depending upon the structure of alkenes. The annulated products could be used for the easy synthesis of valuable 2-aza-fluorenones in a one-pot operation by employing NH₄OAc.