Molybdenum-catalyzed enantioselective sulfoxidation controlled by a nonclassical hydrogen bond between coordinated chiral imidazolium-based dicarboxylate and peroxido ligands

Article abstract of DOI:10.3390/molecules23071595

Chiral alkyl aryl sulfoxides were obtained by molybdenum-catalyzed oxidation of alkyl aryl sulfides with hydrogen peroxide as oxidant in mild conditions with high yields and moderate enantioselectivities. The asymmetry is generated by the use of imidazoli

Full text of DOI:10.3390/molecules23071595

molecules
Article
Molybdenum-Catalyzed Enantioselective
Sulfoxidation Controlled by a Nonclassical Hydrogen
Bond between Coordinated Chiral
Imidazolium-Based Dicarboxylate and
Peroxido Ligands
Carlos J. Carrasco ID , Francisco Montilla * ID and Agustín Galindo * ID
Departamento de Química Inorgánica, Universidad de Sevilla, Aptdo. 1203, 41071 Sevilla, Spain;
ccarrasco1@us.es
*
Correspondence: montilla@us.es (F.M.); galindo@us.es (A.G.)
ꢀ
ꢁꢂꢀꢃꢄꢅꢆꢇ
ꢀ
ꢁꢂꢃꢄꢅꢆ
Received: 22 May 2018; Accepted: 28 June 2018; Published: 30 June 2018
Abstract: Chiral alkyl aryl sulfoxides were obtained by molybdenum-catalyzed oxidation of alkyl
aryl sulfides with hydrogen peroxide as oxidant in mild conditions with high yields and moderate
enantioselectivities. The asymmetry is generated by the use of imidazolium-based dicarboxylic
R
compounds, HL . The in-situ-generated catalyst, a mixture of aqueous [Mo(O)(O ) (H O)
n
] with
2
2
2
R
HL as chirality inductors, in the presence of [PPh ]Br, was identified as the anionic binuclear
complex [PPh ]{[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (
4
R
µ
-L )}, according to spectroscopic data and Density Functional
4
2 2
2
2
Theory (DFT) calculations. A nonclassical hydrogen bond between one C–H bond of the alkyl
R −
R group of coordinated (L ) and one oxygen atom of the peroxido ligand was identified as the
interaction responsible for the asymmetry in the process. Additionally, the step that governs the
enantioselectivity was theoretically analyzed by locating the transition states of the oxido-transfer to
1
R
−
i
6
=
−1
PhMeS of model complexes [Mo(O)(O ) (H O)(
κ
-O-L )] (R = H, Pr). The ∆∆
G
is ca. 0 kcal
·
·
mol
2
2
2
6
=
−1
for R = H, racemic sulfoxide, meanwhile for chiral species the ∆∆
formation of (R)-sulfoxide.
G
of ca. 2 kcal
mol favors the
Keywords: sulfoxidation; asymmetric catalysis; molybdenum; hydrogen peroxide; Density
Functional Theory
1
. Introduction
The synthesis and use of enantiopure sulfoxides is a topic of extraordinary interest in asymmetric
synthesis, asymmetric catalysis and in the pharmaceutical industry [
sulfoxidation of prochiral sulfides is one of the most challenging approaches to chiral sulfoxides,
and catalyzed processes based on metal complexes [ 10 16] and metal-free systems [17] have
been described in the literature. Molybdenum-catalyzed enantioselective sulfoxidations have been
investigated [18 25] and, in general, the Mo catalysts provided results that are somewhat lower than
those of other metals, as for example titanium [26 32] or vanadium [33 41] complexes. However,
1–9]. The enantioselective
3,4, –
–
–
–
we have recently demonstrated that the use of the imidazolium-based dicarboxylic compound
iPr
(
S,S)-1-(1-carboxy-2-methylpropyl)-3-(1-carboxylate-2-methylpropyl)imidazolium (HL in Scheme 1),
as inductor of chirality, in combination with oxidoperoxidomolybdenum complexes, afforded a
system capable to achieve by kinetic resolution a value of 83% ee in the sulfoxidation of alkyl aryl
sulfides [42]. This system is easily accessible, simple, environmentally friendly, and compatible with a
green oxidant as aqueous hydrogen peroxide. In some cases, these advantages are not compatible with
Molecules 2018, 23, 1595; doi:10.3390/molecules23071595
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Molecules 2018, 23, 1595
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Ti or V catalysts. Following our recent research on Mo-catalyzed sulfoxidations [42
–
44], we report
R
here the extension of our system [42] to other imidazolium-based dicarboxylic compounds, HL ,
in order to improve its efficiency in the catalytic asymmetric oxidation of prochiral sulfides using
aqueous hydrogen peroxide (Scheme 1). Moreover, spectroscopic data and Density Functional Theory
(
{
DFT) calculations have allowed identification of the nature of the molybdenum catalytic species,
R
−
[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (µ-L )} , and the origin of the asymmetry in the sulfoxidation process.
2 2 2 2
Scheme 1. Enantioselective sulfoxidation with hydrogen peroxide in the presence of chiral inductors HLR.
2
. Results and Discussion
2
.1. Enantioselective Oxidation of Different Sulfides with Aqueous Hydrogen Peroxide Catalyzed by the System
R
[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)n]/HL /[PPh ]Br
2
2
2
4
The optimization of the reaction conditions were performed with the (S,S)-HLiPr compound, 1c
and methyl phenyl sulfide, and were previously communicated [42]. Chloroform was used as solvent
1 mL) with a 1:1:0.025:2 ratio of methyl phenyl sulfide:H O :Mo-complex:[PPh ]Br. Reactions were
,
(
2
2
4
◦
carried out in a micro-reactor, at 0 C during 1 h, on 1 mmol scale. A solution of MoO (2.5% mmol) in
3
n
aqueous hydrogen peroxide, namely [Mo(O)(O ) (H O) ] (see Materials and Methods), in conjunction
2
2
2
with 1c and tetraphenylphosphonium bromide was employed to in-situ generate the catalyst. In these
conditions, a 94% of conversion with high selectivity to sulfoxide (95%) and 40% ee to the (R)-sulfoxide
was obtained [42]. A number of additional imidazolium-based zwitterionic dicarboxylic acids were
also tested as chiral inductors in the enantioselective oxidation of methyl phenyl sulfide (Table 1).
R
They are derived both from natural α-amino acids of general formula (S,S)-HL (R = Me, 1b; CH Ph,
2
i
iPr
tBu
1
d
; Bu, 1e, (S)-sec-Bu, 1f) or non-natural
α
-amino acids, such as (R,R)-HL
(
1c’) and (S,S)-HL
(1g)
(
Scheme 1). They were prepared by condensation of 2 equiv. of the corresponding amino acid with
◦
glyoxal and p-formaldehyde in water at 90 C for one hour, following the procedures described in the
literature [45
tBu
iPr
,46
].
Additionally, the new compounds (S,S)-HL
(
1g) and (R,R)-HL
(1c’) were also
straightforwardly obtained in an enantiopure form by the same procedure using the corresponding
1
nonproteinogenic amino acids. Compounds 1g and 1c’ were characterized by IR, NMR ( H and
13
1
C{ H}) and mass spectra (see Materials and Methods and Figures S1–S5 in Supplementary Materials).
These compounds were employed to investigate the influence of (i) absence of chirality in the ligand
H
(
HL , 1a); (ii) size and branching of alkyl substituents (1c
–
e,
g); (iii) an additional chiral center (1f);
and (iv) a chiral center with opposed sense of chirality (1c vs 1c’).

Molecules 2018, 23, 1595
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n
2 2
Table 1. Enantioselective oxidation of different sulfides with the system [MoO(O ) (H O) ]/H O /
2
2
2
R
a
HL /[PPh ]Br .
4
Selectivity
Selectivity
Sulfoxide ee
(%) and
Conversion
Sulfoxide
Yield (%)
Entry
HLR
Sulfide
to Sulfoxide to Sulfone
b
(%)
b
b
Configuration c
(%)
(%)
H
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
HL , 1a
PhMeS
PhMeS
PhMeS
PhMeS
PhMeS
PhMeS
PhMeS
PhMeS
93
93
94
95
67
88
95
92
90
89
91
90
81
95
95
95
95
100
96
95
96
91
96
87
64
36
5
5
5
5
0
4
5
4
9
88
88
89
90
67
85
90
88
82
85
79
58
29
Racemic
2 (R)
40 (R)
42 (S)
5 (R)
14 (R)
47 (R)
32 (R)
55 (R)
44 (R)
51 (R)
53 (R)
43 (S)
Me
(S,S)-HL , 1b
(S,S)-HL , 1c
iPr
iPr
(R,R)-HL , 1c’
CH2Ph
(S,S)-HL
, 1d
iBu
(S,S)-HL , 1e
sec-Bu
(S,S)-HL
, 1f
tBu
(S,S)-HL , 1g
sec-Bu
(S,S)-HL
(S,S)-HL
(S,S)-HL
(S,S)-HL
, 1f
(p-Me-C
6
H
4
)MeS
sec-Bu
sec-Bu
sec-Bu
1
0
1
2
3
, 1f
, 1f
, 1f
(p-Cl-C6H4)MeS
(p-Br-C6H4)MeS
Ph(PhCH2)S
4
1
1
1
13
36
0
(S,S)-HLsec-Bu, 1f
Ph(HOCH
Reaction conditions: catalyst [MoO(O
.0 mmol, solvent: Cl CH 1.0 mL, oxidant: H
2 2
CH
)S
a
n
4
O) ]Br 0.05 mmol, sulfide
] 0.025 mmol, HLR 0.0125 mmol, [PPh
(30% aq.), oxidant:sulfide ratio 1:1, 1 h, T = 0 C. Determined by
2
)
2
(H
2
◦
b
1
3
2
O
2
c
Gas Chromatography (50
µ
L of dodecane as the internal standard). Determined by High-Performance Liquid
Chromatography (HPLC, see details in Supplementary Materials).
R
n
4
As expected, the [Mo(O)(O ) (H O) ]/HL /[PPh ]Br system was effective for the sulfoxidation
2
2
2
of methyl phenyl sulfide with conversions ranging from 67%, for 1d (entry 5), to 93–95% for reagents
1
a
–
c
,
1f and 1g. In all cases, reactions proceeded with chemoselectivity with nearly quantitative
R
sulfoxide yields. The nature of the chiral inductor HL clearly controls enantioselectivity. The use
of the achiral reagent 1a gave the expected racemic mixture (entry 1). When reagents 1b
–g were
employed, it was observed that an increase in the branching at the C atom of the R group of the
α
ligand seemed to have a beneficial effect on the enantioselectivity. Specifically, reactions performed
with chiral ligands with unbranched alkyl groups, such as 1b and 1d (entries 2 and 5, respectively),
gave rise to low ee values of 2% and 5%, respectively. Conversely, the use of ligands with branched
alkyl groups, such as 1c, 1f and 1g (entries 3, 7 and 8, respectively), produced ee values higher
than 30%. The highest ee was observed with the reagent 1f (47% ee) in which the additional chiral
center could have a positive effect in the enantioselectivity. Importantly, the reaction performed with
iPr
(R,R)-HL
(
1c’) (entry 4) gave an ee result comparable to that of its (S,S)-enantiomer, 1c, only with
R
opposed sense of sulfoxide chirality. The adequate selection of the HL inductor chirality controls the
production of the sulfoxide enantiomer. Finally, the activity of the system was tested with other sulfide
substrates using compound 1f as chiral inductor (entries 9–15). In general, good conversions and
enantioselectivities close to 50% for the corresponding (R)-sulfoxide were found, with the exception
of the sulfide Ph(HOCH CH )S, which showed lower values (29% sulfoxide yield and 43% ee for
2
2
the (S) enantiomer, entry 13). Conversions obtained with 1f were similar to those found with 1c
but enantioselectivity values were slightly superior using 1f than 1c for the same substrates [42].
[42],
One equivalent of hydrogen peroxide per substrate was used in all experiments because formation
of the corresponding sulfone was observed when two or more equivalents of the oxidant were
employed [42,43]. As we previously communicated, the ee can be increased by kinetic resolution and
the (R)-sulfoxide PhMeSO was obtained in 83% ee with a 1.6-fold excess of the oxidant [42]. To probe
the kinetic resolution process in more detail, we performed the oxidation of racemic PhMeSO sulfoxide,
under the same reaction conditions, varying the oxidant-to-substrate ratio (Figure 1). From the
analysis of the variation of the enantiomeric excess with respect to the conversion of sulfoxide, it was
possible to determinate a stereoselectivity factor E of 2.8 (E = kS’/kR’, see Supplementary Materials
for details) [47]. Therefore, one may conclude that the enantiomeric excess of the sulfoxide can be
controlled by adjusting the degree of conversion (at the expense of the sulfoxide yield).

Molecules 2018, 23, 1595
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Figure 1. Kinetic resolution of racemic PhMeSO with catalyst [MoO(O ) (H O)
n
]/1c/[PPh ]Br (CHCl ,
2
2
2
4
3
◦
0
C, sulfoxide:Mo ratio of 100:2.5): sulfoxide and sulfone yields and the ee of the (R)-sulfoxide versus
the oxidant:substrate ratio.
2
.2. Nature of the Molybdenum Catalyst and Origin of the Enantioselectivity
With the purpose of gaining evidence about the nature of the molybdenum catalyst, the reaction
iPr
n
of [Mo(O)(O ) (H O) ] with 2 equiv. of the sodium salt of (S,S)-HL was carried out. On the basis of
2
2
2
Infrared (IR), Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and Mass Spectrometry (MS) data (see Experimental
iPr
and Supplementary Materials), the binuclear formulation Na{[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (µ-L )} was
2
2
2
2
proposed for the isolated yellow powder. Further confirmation came from DFT calculations,
iPr
−
which were carried out at the B3LYP level of theory for the anion {[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (µ-L )} ,
2
2
2
2
2
c
(optimized structure shown in Figure 2). The computed IR spectrum of this anion fits well with the
iPr
experimental one of complex Na{[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (µ-L )} (Figure S7, Supplementary Materials),
2
2
2
2
thus supporting the proposed formulation. This allowed us to assign several IR absorptions of
iPr
compound Na{[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (
µ
-L )}, as for instance the asymmetric and symmetric
ν
(COO)
COOasym − νCOOsym) value of
-O coordination of the carboxylate group
observed in the optimized structure. Besides the carboxylate absorptions, the oxido group generates
2
2
2
2
−
1
bands at 1611 and 1391 cm , respectively. This attribution gave a ∆(ν
ca. 220 cm 1, which is compatible with the monodentate
−
1
κ
−
1
a characteristic ν(Mo=O) band at 962 cm , while the peroxide ligands display distinctive ν(OO),
νas[Mo(OO)] and νs[Mo(OO)] absorptions at 861, 643 and 582 cm 1, respectively, in the expected
−
ranges for this ligand [48].
In order to support the formulation of the Mo catalyst, the activity of the isolated
iPr
complex Na{[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (µ-L )} was tested in the sulfoxidation reaction of methyl phenyl
2
2
2
2
sulfide, under the optimized reaction conditions. The conversion (93%) and ee (42%) values
achieved were completely similar to those observed when the catalytic species was in-situ
R
−
formed [42], thus proving the nature of the catalyst as a binuclear {[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (µ-L )}
2
2
2
2
oxidodiperoxidomolybdenum(VI) species.

Molecules 2018, 23, 1595
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-LiPr)} anion, 2c, and proposed
−
Figure 2. Optimized structure of the {[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (µ
2
2
2
2
formulation of the Mo catalyst species.
Once the catalyst structure is known, the origin of the enantioselectivity was theoretically
1
iPr −
investigated. In principle, the simple
κ
-O-carboxylate coordination of the chiral ligand (L
)
can be in contradiction with the experimentally observed asymmetric process because chiral
inductors are usually bi- or polydentate ligands. However, the analysis of the optimized structure
iPr
−
[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (µ-L )} , 2c, reveals two additional interactions. One is a hydrogen bond
2 2 2 2
{
between the O–H from the water ligand and the noncoordinated oxygen atom of the carboxylate
iPr −
group of (L
)
(explicitly shown in Figure 2, O–H···O distance of 2.75 Å). The second one is subtler
51] between one C–H bond of the isopropyl group
and one oxygen atom of one of the peroxido ligands (C–H···O distance of 2.51 Å). This interaction
and consists of a nonclassical hydrogen bond [49
–
R
−
i
sec
is also present in other optimized complexes {[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (
µ
-L )} (R = Bu, 2e
;
Bu, 2f;
2
2
2
2
t
and Bu, 2g), while is weaker (for R = CH Ph, 2d) or absent in complexes containing R = H, 2a, and
2
Me, 2b, substituents (see Table 2 and optimized structures in Figure S10 in Supplementary Materials).
R
−
i
i
sec
t
Compounds {[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (
µ
-L )} (R = Pr, 2c; Bu, 2e
;
Bu, 2f; and Bu, 2g) display C–H···
O
2
2
2
2
◦
distances within the range 2.50–2.66 Å and C–H···O angles higher than 160 (Table 2), which are
typical parameters of nonclassical C–H···O hydrogen bonds (cut-off values of distances <2.8 Å and
◦
angles >90 ) [52
–
54]. Interestingly, these compounds are those in which an asymmetric process is
observed (inductors 1c
null activity is found (inductors 1a,b,d in Table 1).
,
e
–
g
in Table 1), while for compounds without the C–H···O interaction, low or
Table 2. Selected structural data for classical and nonclassical hydrogen bonds in optimized structures
R
−
{
[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (µ-L )} 2.
2
2
2
2
◦
Distances, Å
C–H···O
Angles,
C–H···O
R −
R (µ–L )
O–H···O
O–H···O
H
2a
2b
2c
2d
2e
2f
-
>4
1.814, 1.822
1.814, 1.831
1.807, 1.817
-
-
158
158, 159
159, 160
160
160
160, 161
160
Me
i
Pr
2.509, 2.521
2.352 (C–Harom.), 3.570
2.552, 2.558
2.621, 2.656
2.509, 2.521
168
CH Ph
1.803, 1.815 138 (C–Harom.), 111
2
i
Bu
1.796, 1.811
1.793, 1.803
1.807, 1.817
170, 171
160
166
sec
Bu
t
Bu
2g
With the aim of confirming that these interactions are responsible of the asymmetry, we have
1
R
−
i
selected the model complexes [Mo(O)(O ) (H O)(κ -O-L )] (R = H, 3a, and Pr, 3c), containing
2
2
2

Molecules 2018, 23, 1595
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for simplicity only one molybdenum atom, and studied the step that controls the enantioselectivity.
This is the oxido-transfer step, which follows a Sharpless-type outer-sphere concerted mechanism
according to previous studies [43]. The oxygen atom transfer is produced by the nucleophilic attack of
sulfide onto the peroxide ligand that cleaves the O–O bond with sulfoxide formation. This transition
state (TS) reflects the interaction between the HOMO (Highest Occupied Molecular Orbital) of the
sulfide substrate and the σ*(O–O) LUMO (Lowest Unoccupied Molecular Orbital) of peroxide and it is
characterized by the approaching of sulfide reagent with associated elongation of the O–O linkage.
Taking into account the presence of two peroxide ligands and two prochiral faces of the sulfide,
four transition states have been located for the oxido-transfer. Figure 3 shows two of the calculated
1
R
−
TSs for [Mo(O)(O ) (H O)(κ -O-L )] (R = H and iPr), while the other calculated TSs are shown
2
2
2
in Figure S11 (Supplementary Materials). The four transition states optimized for the nonchiral
1
H
−
−1
[
Mo(O)(O ) (H O)(
κ
-O-L )] species, 3a, have the same Gibbs free energy (
±
0.2 kcal
·
mol ) with
2
2
2
−
1
6
=
−1
a barrier for the oxido-transfer step of ca. 35 kcal
·
mol . The ∆∆
G
is ca. 0 kcal
·
mol , which is
compatible with the formation of racemic sulfoxide using 1a (entry 1, Table 1). By contrast, for chiral
1
iPR
−
[
Mo(O)(O ) (H O)(
κ
-O-L )] species, 3c, there are two transition states, those that yield the R
2
2
2
sulfoxide TS_c1 and TS_c4, showing lower energies than TS_c2 and TS_c3 that afford the S sulfoxide.
6
=
−1
of ca. 2 kcal mol is well suited for the asymmetric process observed using 1c
The calculated ∆∆
G
·
(entry 3, Table 1).
1
R
−
Figure 3. Calculated transition states for the oxido-transfer step from [Mo(O)(O ) (H O)(
κ
-O-L )]
2
2
2
complexes to PhMeS (R = H, TS_a1, top; and iPr, TS_c1, bottom).
3
. Materials and Methods
3
.1. General
Synthetic reactions were carried out under aerobic conditions. Chemicals were obtained from
commercial sources and used as supplied, while solvents were appropriately purified using standard
procedures. Infrared spectra were recorded on a Perkin-Elmer FT–IR Spectrum Two spectrophotometer
(pressed KBr pellets). NMR spectra were recorded at the Centro de Investigaciones, Tecnología e
Innovación (CITIUS) of the University of Sevilla by using Bruker AMX-300 or Avance III spectrometers
with 13C{ H} and H shifts referenced to the residual solvent signals. All data are reported in ppm
1
1
downfield from Si(CH ) . The gas chromatograms (GC) were obtained using a Varian Chromatogram
3
4
CP-3800 with nitrogen as the carrier gas. The chromatogram used a Varian automatic injector,

Molecules 2018, 23, 1595
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model CP-8410, flame ionization detector (FID), and an Agilent column, model CP-7502. The HPLC
chromatograms were performed on an Agilent 1260 Infinity instrument with a Chiralpak IA column
at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min with AcOEt/heptane = 6/4 (v/v) and using a UV detector at 254 nm.
i
For Ph(HOCH CH )SO sulfoxide, a flow rate of 0.5 mL/min with heptane/ PrOH = 9/1 (v/v) was
2
2
employed. The absolute configuration (reported in Table 1) was determined by comparing HPLC
elution orders and the sign of the specific rotations with the literature data [14
carried out using a JASCO P-2000 Digital Polarimeter and the measurements were made at ca. 25 C
,
15]. Polarimetry was
◦
(
concentration of ca. 10 mg/mL). High-resolution mass spectra (HRMS) were carried out by using a
Q-Exactive Hybrid Quadrupole-Orbitrap Mass Spectrometer from Thermo Scientific at the CITIUS of
the University of Sevilla.
3
.2. Synthesis of Chiral Imidazolium-Based Zwitterionic Dicarboxylic Acids HLR
The syntheses of compounds (S,S)-HLR (1a
) have been previously described [45,46] and they
–f
1
13
1
were identified by comparison of their IR, NMR ( H and C{ H}) and mass spectra with those
previously reported (see Figure S6, Supplementary materials).
(R,R)-1-(1-carboxy-2-methylpropyl)-3-(1-carboxylate-2-methylpropyl)imidazolium,
(R,R)-HLiPr
(1c’).
A solution of D-valine (10 g, 84 mmol) in water (25 mL) was reacted with glyoxal (4.80 mL, 40% w/w
◦
solution in water, 42 mmol) and formaldehyde (3.13 mL, 37% w/w solution in water, 42 mmol) at 95 C
for 2 h. Compound (R,R)-HLiPr, 1c’, was obtained by removing the solvent under reduced pressure.
−
1
Recrystallization from water yields 5.18 g (46%) of the product as light-brown solid. IR (KBr, cm ):
464 (br), 3166 (w), 3114 (m), 3046 (m), 2970 (s), 2935 (w), 2878 (m), 1686 (vs,br), 1548 (s), 1473 (m),
3
1
8
6
9
6
392 (m), 1375 (m), 1344 (w), 1295 (w), 1265 (m), 1162 (s), 1120 (m), 1096 (m), 1015 (w), 977 (w), 912 (w),
1
3
71 (w), 838 (w), 760 (w), 712 (w), 652 (w). H NMR (300 MHz, D O):
δ
0.91, 1.00 (d, J
= 6.6 Hz,
2
HH
3
i
4
5
H, CH(CH ) ), 2.55 (m, 2H, CH(CH ) ), 4.84 (d, J
= 7.8 Hz, 2H, CH Pr), 7.68 (s, 2H, C H/C H),
3
2
2
3 2
HH
13
1
.13 (s, 1H, C H). C{ H} NMR (75 MHz, D O):
δ 17.3, 18.4 (s, CH(CH ) ), 31.2 (s, CH(CH ) ),
3 2 3 2
2
2
i
4
5
25
9.8 (s, CH Pr), 122.3 (s, C H/C H), 136.2 (s, C H), 172.3 (s, CO). [α] = −106.5 (H O). HRMS for
D
2
+
C H N O : [M + 1] requires m/z 269.15, found m/z 269.1492.
13
20
2
4
(
S,S)-1-(1-carboxy-2,2-dimethylpropyl)-3-(1-carboxylate-2,2-dimethylpropyl) imidazolium, (S,S)-HLtBu
A solution of L-tert-leucine (2 g, 15 mmol) in water (20 mL) was reacted with glyoxal (866 L, 40%
w/w solution in water, 8 mmol) and formaldehyde (566 L, 37% w/w solution in water, 8 mmol)
1g, was obtained by removing the solvent under reduced
pressure. Recrystallisation from water yields 1.83 g (82%) of the product as light-brown solid. IR (KBr,
(1g).
µ
µ
◦
tBu
at 95 C for 4 h. Compound (S,S)-HL
,
−
1
cm ): 3452 (br), 3187 (m), 3160 (m), 3108 (m), 3038 (m), 2965 (s), 2915 (w), 2878 (w), 1686 (vs,br),
1553 (s), 1482 (s), 1447 (w), 1403 (m), 1375 (s), 1369 (m), 1353 (m), 1315 (m), 1268 (m), 1215 (m), 1159 (s),
1
6
101 (m), 1051 (m), 1029 (w), 938 (m), 892 (m), 855 (m), 820 (w), 801 (w), 789 (m), 769 (m), 731 (s),
1
99 (m), 681 (m), 657 (m), 643 (m). H NMR (300 MHz, CD OD):
δ
1.10 (s, 18H, C(CH ) ), 4.87 (s, 2H,
3
3 3
t
4
4
5
2
13
1
CH Bu), 7.75 (d, J
δ
= 1.5 Hz, 2H, C H/C H), 9.49 (s, 1H, C H). C{ H} NMR (75 MHz, CD OD):
3
HH
t
4
5
2
26.0 (s, C(CH ) ), 34.7 (s, C(CH ) ), 72.6 (s, CH Bu), 122.3 (s, C H/C H), 137.3 (s, C H), 169.6 (s, CO).
3 3 3 3
25
+
[
α] = +144.4 (H O). HRMS for C H N O : [M + 1] requires m/z 297.18, found m/z 297.1804.
D
2 15 24 2 4
3
.3. Preparation and Titration of [Mo(O)(O ) (H O)n] Solution
2 2 2
Solutions of the aqua complex of oxidodiperoxidomolybdenum in aqueous hydrogen peroxide
were prepared as previously described [55]. For the purpose of simplicity the solution is referred to in
this work simply as aqueous [Mo(O)(O ) (H O)n].
2
2
2
The resulting aqueous solution of molybdenum complex has an excess of hydrogen peroxide.
The addition of the 0.025 mmol of molybdenum species in the catalytic essays includes a supplementary
amount of oxidant. In order to avoid the formation of sulfone product, one equivalent of 30% hydrogen
peroxide per sulfide substrate should be used. Thus, freshly prepared [Mo(O)(O ) (H O)
n
] 0.25 M
2
2
2
solutions were employed, which were conveniently titrated before each catalytic test. The titration was

Molecules 2018, 23, 1595
8 of 12
n
2 4
carried out as follows. To 10 mL of [Mo(O)(O ) (H O) ] solution was added H SO 6M (10 mL) and
2
2
2
the mixture diluted with water (25 mL). This solution was titrated with KMnO ca. 0.2 M (previously
4
standardized with Na C O ). The mean of five titrations afforded a typical value of ca. 0.2 mmol of
2
2
4
hydrogen peroxide per 100
µL of solution. On this basis, the exact amount of hydrogen peroxide 30%
employed in the catalytic test can be easily calculated.
3
.4. Synthesis of Complex Na{[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (µ-LiPr)}
2
2
2
2
Over a solution of (S,S)-HLiPr (0.504 g, 1.88 mmol) in water (15 mL) was added dropwise a solution
of NaHCO (0.158 g, 1.88 mmol) in water (5 mL) and the mixture was stirred at room temperature
3
n
until the evolution of CO ceased (5–10 min). Over this solution was added [Mo(O)(O ) (H O) ]
2
2 2
2
(15.03 mL, 0.25 M aqueous solution, 3.76 mmol) and the mixture was stirred at room temperature
for 1 h. The resulting solution was evaporated to dryness affording a yellow powder identified
iPr
−1
as Na{[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (
2
µ
-L )} (1.216 g, 96%). IR (KBr, cm ): 3440 (br vs), 3136 (m), 2966 (s),
935 (m), 2877 (m), 1611 (vs), 1563 (m), 1548 (m), 1468 (m), 1423 (m), 1391 (s), 1344 (m), 1258 (m),
234 (w), 1155 (s), 1120 (m), 1025 (w), 962 (s), 861 (s), 750 (m), 712 (w), 643 (m), 582 (m), 537 (m).
2
2
2
2
1
1
H NMR (D O, 300 MHz):
δ
0.80 (br d, 6H, 2CH(CH ) ), 0.91 (br d, 6H, 2
CH(CH ) ), 4.58 (br m, 2H, 2
×
CH(CH ) ), 2.44 (br m,
2
3 2
3 2
i
4
5
2
2
H, 2
×
×
CH Pr), 7.53 (s, 2H, 2
×
CH, H /H ), 8.92 (s, 1H, CH, H ).
3
2
13
1
C{ H} NMR (D O, 75 MHz):
δ
17.5 (s, 2 CH(CH ) ), 18.6 (s, 2
×
5
×
CH(CH ) ), 31.1 (s, 2 CH(CH3)2),
×
2
3 2
3 2
i
4
7
1.4 (s, 2
×
CH Pr), 122.0 (s, 2
×
CH, C /C ), 135.8 (s, CH), 173.6 (s, 2
positive mode, found m/z 269.15 (for HL + 1, C H N O , 268.14) and 291.13 (for NaL + 1,
NaC H N O , 290.12). ESI-MS: negative mode, found m/z 267.13 (for HL -1, C H N O , 268.14),
45.01 (for MoO L -1, C H MoN O , 446.02).
5 13 20 2 9
×
COO). Electrospray ionization-MS:
iPr
iPr
1
3
20
2
4
iPr
13
19
2
4
13 20
2
4
iPr
4
3
.5. General Procedure for Enantioselective Mo-Catalyzed Oxidation of Sulfides in the Presence of HLR
The reactor (a 50 mL vial equipped with a Young valve and containing a stirrer flea) was charged
R
with [Mo(O)(O ) (H O)
n
] (100
µ
L, 0.25 M aqueous solution, 0.025 mmol), HL (0.0125 mmol), [PPh ]Br
2
2
2
4
as specified (typically 0.05 mmol), the reaction solvent (1 mL), the oxidant (30% aqueous H O ; 1 mmol
2
2
per sulfide substrate, see details above) and the sulfide substrate (1 mmol), in the aforementioned order.
The reactor was sealed and maintained at the working temperature, with constant stirring (600 rpm)
in a thermostatted bath for the duration of the reaction. Upon completion, the reaction mixture was
treated with diethyl ether (10 mL) and then filtered with 0.45
µm nylon syringe filter. The resulting
solution was analyzed by GC (by adding 50 L of dodecane as the internal standard). Afterwards the
µ
solution was evaporated to dryness by using a rotavap. The resulting residue was then analyzed by
HPLC (by adding 20 mL of ethyl acetate).
3
.6. Computational Details
R
−
−
The electronic structure and geometries of the model compounds [Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (
µ-L )]
2
2
2
2
1
i
i
sec
t
R
(
(
R = H
,
2a; Me, 2b; Pr, 2c; CH Ph, 2d; Bu, 2e
;
Bu, 2f; and Bu, 2g) and [Mo(O)(O ) (H O)(
κ
-O-L )]
2
2 2
2
i
R = H, 3a, and Pr, 3c) were computed using density functional theory at the B3LYP level [56
,
57].
59] while the 6-31G(d,p) basis set was used
for the C, N, O, S and H atoms. The transition states of the interaction of PhMeS with 3a and 3c, namely
TSa1 and TSc1 , were located at the same level of theory. Geometries of all model complexes were
The Mo atom was described with the LANL2DZ basis set [58
,
–
4
–4
optimized without symmetry constraints. Frequency calculations were carried out at the same level
of theory to identify all of the stationary points as transition states (one imaginary frequency) or as
minima (zero imaginary frequencies) and to provide the thermal correction to free energies at 298.15
K and 1 atm. The DFT calculations were performed using the Gaussian 09 suite of programs [60].
Coordinates of the optimized compounds are collected in Table S4 (Supplementary Materials).

Molecules 2018, 23, 1595
9 of 12
4
. Conclusions
A simple process for the enantioselective Mo-catalyzed sulfoxidation with aqueous hydrogen
R
peroxide, by using imidazolium-based dicarboxylate compounds HL , 1b
–
g, as chiral inductors, has
been developed. The advantages of this system are: (i) better reaction times (1 h); (ii) commercial
and cheap molybdenum starting material, MoO ; and (iii) straightforward synthesis of the
3
R
(
S,S)- or (R,R)-HL inductors, in comparison with the elaborated chiral ligands reported in the
bibliography. By combination of spectroscopic data and DFT calculations, the binuclear anion
R
−
{
[Mo(O)(O ) (H O)] (µ-L )} , , has been proposed as the chiral catalytic species. A nonclassical
2
2 2 2 2
hydrogen bond between one C–H bond of the alkyl R group and one oxygen atom of one of the
peroxido ligands controls the enantioselectivity of the sulfoxidation. This subtle interaction is only
present in optimized complexes 2c
,e,f,g, those that showed an acceptable ee value. This has been
additionally demonstrated by analysing the transition states of the oxido-transfer of model complexes
1
R
−
Mo(O)(O ) (H O)(κ -O-L )] (R = H, 3a, and Pr, 3c) to PhMeS sulfide.
2 2 2
i
[
Supplementary Materials: The following are available online, Figures S1–S6: NMR and MS spectra of
compounds, Figure S7: calculated IR spectrum of 2c, Figures S7 and S8: determination of the stereoselectivity
factor, Figures S10 and S11: optimized structures of transition states and compounds , Figure S12: selected chiral
1
2
HPLC diagrams of optical active sulfoxides, Table S1: energies of the transition states for the oxido-transfer, and
Table S2: Coordinates of the optimized structures.
Author Contributions: C.J.C., F.M., and A.G. designed the experiments; C.J.C. and F.M. performed the
experiments; A.G. designed the theoretical analysis and performed the theoretical calculations; C.J.C., F.M.,
and A.G. wrote the manuscript.
Funding: This research was funded by Junta de Andalucía (Proyecto de Excelencia FQM-7079) and Universidad
de Sevilla (VI Plan Propio).
Acknowledgments: Financial support is gratefully acknowledged. We thank to the Centro de Servicios de
Informática y Redes de Comunicaciones (CSIRC), Universidad de Granada, for providing the computing time.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.
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©
2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access
article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution
(CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).