Abstract
| - The long-known, but previously unexplored 2,3-dihydroimidazo[1,2-a]pyridine (DHIP) has been shown to be a competent acyl transfer catalyst. Its chiral 2-phenyl derivatives obtainable in two steps from commercially available starting materials have proved to be effective acylation catalysts, giving high levels of enantioselectivity (s = 20−85) in kinetic resolution of secondary benzylic alcohols. A transition state model explaining the observed selectivity has been proposed.
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