How do chemists make epoxides?

1 Answer
anor277
Jul 7, 2017

They use #"meta-chloroperoxybenzoic acid"#

Explanation:

And thus the basic reaction is............

#"olefin "stackrel(MCPBA)rarr" epoxide....."#

And this is a powerful organic reaction, in that you can (potentially) make 2 chiral centres from an olefin, i.e. from #R_1R_2C=CR_3R_4# to give #R_1R_2(HO)C-CR_3R_4(OH)# after the epoxide ring is oxidized up. Current methods of synthesis (e.g. #"Sharpless peroxidation"#) are good enuff to accomplish this end.

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