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Abstract The implementation of continuous flow technology is critical towards enhancing the application of photochemical reactions for industrial process development. However, there are significant time and resource constraints associated with translating discovery scale vial-based batch reactions to continuous flow scale-up conditions. Herein we report the development of a droplet microfluidic platform, which enables high-throughput reaction discovery in flow to generate pharmaceutically relevant compound libraries. This platform allows for enhanced material efficiency, as reactions can be performed on picomole scale. Furthermore, high-throughput data collection via on-line ESI mass spectrometry facilitates the rapid analysis of individual, nanoliter-sized reaction droplets at acquisition rates of 0.3 samples/s. We envision this high-throughput screening platform to expand upon the robust capabilities and impact of photochemical reactions in drug discovery and development. 

Abstract Within the realm of drug discovery, high‐throughput experimentation techniques enable the rapid optimization of reactions and expedited generation of drug compound libraries for biological and pharmacokinetic evaluation. Herein we report the development of a segmented flow mass spectrometry‐based platform to enable the rapid exploration of photoredox reactions for early‐stage drug discovery. Specifically, microwell plate‐based photochemical reaction screens were reformatted to segmented flow format to enable delivery to nanoelectrospray ionization‐mass spectrometry analysis. This approach was demonstrated for the late‐stage modification of complex drug scaffolds, as well as the subsequent structure–activity relationship evaluation of synthesized analogs. This technology is anticipated to expand the robust capabilities of photoredox catalysis in drug discovery by enabling high‐throughput library diversification.