Development of new chiral phosphine-salen type ligands and their application in the Cu(I)-catalyzed enantioselective Henry reaction

Chiral phosphine-salen type ligand L4 prepared from (R)-2-(diphenylphosphino)-1,1'-binaphthyl-2'-amine was found to be a fairly effective chiral ligand for Cu(I)-promoted enantioselective Henry reactions of arylaldehydes with nitromethane to give the corresponding adducts in moderate enantioselectivities and moderate to good yields. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.