Determination of enantiomeric excess of alpha-hydroxy-3-phenoxybenzeneacetonitrile and its n-butyl ester by chiral high-performance liquid chromatography

Determination of enantiomeric excess of alpha-hydroxy-3-phenoxybenzeneaceto nitrile, an important intermediate in the production of several pyrethroid insecticides, is usually done after derivatization and gas chromatographic analysis on a beta-cyclodextrin-based column. In this communication we repo rt a direct determination of enantiomeric excess of alpha-hydroxy-3-phenoxy benzeneacetonitrile and its n-butyl eater by chiral HPLC on Chiralcel OJ (D aicel, Japan) in a single run without derivatization. (C) 2000 Elsevier Sci ence B.V. All rights reserved.