| Abstract: | The synthesis of optically active (1R,2R)- and (1S,2R)-2-deuterio-2,3-dihydro-2-methyl-6-nitrobenzothiophene-1-oxide (3 and 4) is described. Several racemic aryl methyl carbinols in the presence of 3 or 4 give different chemical shifts for enantiomeric CH, CH3 and OH protons. These chemical shift differences are larger than those observed in analogous sulfoxide–alcohol pairs without nitro groups. Quinine and cinchonidine cause observable non-equivalence of methylene and aromatic protons in racemic 4. The magnitude of the diastereomeric shift difference is sensitive to temperature, solvent, concentration, nature of the π system and steric effects. |
