Kinetic Resolution of Racemic Carboxylic Acids Using Achiral Alcohols by the Promotion of Benzoic Anhydrides and Tetramisole Derivatives: Production of Chiral Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs and Their Esters

A variety of optically active carboxylic esters were produced by kinetic resolution of racemic carboxylic acids by using achiral alcohols, benzoic anhydrides, and Birman's tetramisole-type catalysts. Bis(alpha-naphthyl)methanol is a very effective reagent for producing the corresponding esters with high ee values in the presence of 4-methoxybenzoic anhydride (PMBA) as the coupling reagent by promotion of benzotetramisole derivatives (BTM, alpha-Np-BTM, and beta-Np-BTM). This protocol directly provides chiral carboxylic esters from free carboxylic acids and achiral alcohols by utilizing a transacylation process to generate the mixed anhydrides from the acid components with benzoic anhydride derivatives in the presence of chiral catalysts. ((C) Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2008)