Chiral Phosphotungstate Functionalized with (S)-1-Phenylethylamine: Synthesis, Characterization, and Asymmetric Epoxidation of Styrene.

In the present work, an attempt has been made to induce chirality in copper-substituted phosphotungstate (PW11Cu) by functionalization with (S)-(+)-1-phenylethylamine (S-PEA) via a ligand substitution approach. The formation of a N→Cu dative bond was confirmed by 13C NMR, while 1H NMR, circular dichroism spectroscopy and optical rotation studies confirmed the introduction of chirality to the Keggin structure. The synthesized material was used as the heterogeneous catalyst for the asymmetric epoxidation of styrene using various green oxidants to obtain high enantiomeric excess (ee), and the reaction with molecular oxygen was found to give the best ee. Regeneration studies were carried out, and the catalyst was found to be suitable for the same. A probable mechanism is also proposed. A comparison with other copper-based polyoxometalate catalysts clearly demonstrate the superiority and novelty of the present catalyst in terms of the reaction conditions as well as the obtained ee.