10.1016/S0040-4039(01)81559-8
The research aimed to investigate the potential of chiral lithium amides (la-e) as chiral catalysts in the addition of n-butyllithium to benzaldehyde, with the goal of achieving enantioselective synthesis of 1-phenyl-1-pentanol. The study focused on the impact of different ligand structures and reaction conditions on the optical yield of the chiral alcohol. The chemicals used in the process included n-butyllithium, benzaldehyde, and a series of chiral lithium amides (la-e) synthesized from inexpensive S-α-methylbenzylamine. The researchers found that the structure of the ligand and the reaction conditions, such as solvent and temperature, significantly influenced the selectivity of the reaction. The highest optical yield of 90% was achieved using a DMM/Et20 (1:1, v/v) mixture as solvent and a reaction temperature of -120°C with ligand Id. The study concluded that the chiral lithium amides could effectively act as chiral catalysts in this enantioselective addition reaction, with the potential to improve the optical yield through ligand design and optimization of reaction conditions.