Vanadium-Catalyzed Sulfur Oxidation/Kinetic Resolution in the Synthesis of Enantiomerically Pure Alkyl Aryl Sulfoxides

The importance of the mix: The use of chloroform as solvent, the ligand (R)‐2 and [VO(acac)2] as catalyst, and H2O2 as oxidant promotes the highly enantioselective oxidation of simple alkyl aryl sulfides 1 to give alkyl aryl sulfoxides (R)‐3 (see scheme). The success of this process partly derives from an efficient kinetic resolution of the product sulfoxides.