Asymmetric Homoenolate Additions to Acyl Phosphonates through Rational Design of a Tailored <i>N</i>‑Heterocyclic Carbene Catalyst

Abstract

A highly selective NHC-catalyzed synthesis of γ-butyro­lactones from the fusion of enals and α-keto­phosphonates has been developed. Computational modeling of competing transition states guided a rational design strategy to achieve enhanced levels of enantio­selectivity with a new tailored <i>C</i>₁-symmetric biaryl-saturated imid­azolium-derived NHC catalyst