N,N '-Bis(3,5-di-t-butylsalicylidene)-1,2 manganese(III) chloride - the Jacobsen catalyst

The commercially available Jacobsen catalyst, N,N'-Bis(3,5-di-t-butylsalicy lidene)-1,2-cyclohexanediaminomanganese(III) chloride 2, is the most enanti oselective catalyst developed to date for the asymmetric epoxidation of a b road range of unfunctionalized olefins. After describing the synthesis of t he title compound a brief discussion of the epoxidation mechanism is given. Afterwards several applications for the enantioselective epoxidation of un functionalized olefins are described. For each application the scope and li mitations are discussed.