Photocatalytic Asymmetric Epoxidation of Terminal Olefins Using Water as an Oxygen Source in the Presence of a Mononuclear Non-Heme Chiral Manganese Complex

Photocatalytic enantioselective epoxidation of terminal olefins using a mononuclear non-heme chiral manganese catalyst, [(R,R-BQCN)Mn^II]²⁺, and water as an oxygen source yields epoxides with relatively high enantioselectivities (e.g., up to 60% enantiomeric excess). A synthetic mononuclear non-heme chiral Mn(IV)-oxo complex, [(R,R-BQCN)Mn^IV(O)]²⁺, affords similar enantioselectivities in the epoxidation of terminal olefins under stoichiometric reaction conditions. Mechanistic details of each individual step of the photoinduced catalysis, including formation of the Mn(IV)-oxo intermediate, are discussed on the basis of combined results of laser flash photolysis and other spectroscopic methods.