A Nonempirical Approach for Direct Determination of the Absolute Configuration of 1,2-Diols and Amino Alcohols Using Mg(II)bisporphyrin

We report here a simple, facile, and direct nonempirical protocol for determining the absolute stereochemistry of a variety of chiral 1,2-diols and amino alcohols at room temperature with no chemical derivatization using Mg­(II)­bisporphyrin as a host. Addition of excess substrates resulted in the formation of a 1:2 host–guest complex in which two substrates bind in an unusual endo-endo fashion because of interligand H-bonding within the bisporphyrin cavity leading to the formation of a unidirectional screw in the bisporphyrin moiety that allowed us an accurate absolute stereochemical determination of the chiral substrate via exciton-coupled circular dichroism (ECCD). The sign of the CD couplet has also been found to be inverted when the stereogenic center is moved by one C atom simply from the bound to an unbound functionality and thus able to discriminate between them successfully. Strong complexation of the alcoholic oxygen with Mg­(II)­bisporphyrin rigidifies the host–guest complex, which eventually enhances its ability to stereochemically differentiate the asymmetric center. The ECCD sign of a large number of substrates has followed consistent and predictable trends; thus, the system is widely applicable. Moreover, computational calculations clearly support the experimental observations along with the absolute stereochemistry of the chiral substrate.