A stereocontrolled approach to electrophilic epoxides

Lithium t-butyl hydroperoxide (easily generated by addition of an alkyl-lithium to anhydrous t-butyl hydroperoxide in THF solution) is a powerful reagent for the epoxidation of electrophilic alkenes at –20 to 0 °C under full stereocontrol.Thus αβ-unsaturated esters, sulphones, sulphoximines, and amides are readily epoxidised with complete regio- and stereo-specificity and with considerable chiroselectivity (20–100%) when appropriate chiral auxiliaries such as menthyl, 8-phenylmenthyl, or a camphor-sulphonamide derivative are used. Asymmetric αβ-unsaturated sulphoximines undergo epoxidation with 100% diastereoselectivity. The only exceptions to stereocontrol noted are heavily substituted maleate esters such as di-t-butyl maleate. The αβ-epoxy amides are shown to be valuable sources of the corresponding epoxy ketones by treatment with an organolithium, allowing a stereo- and chemoselective entry in high yield to these useful intermediates.