Chiral ionic liquids, a renewal for the chemistry of chiral solvents? Design, synthesis and applications for chiral recognition and asymmetric synthesis

Chiral ionic solvents were almost unexplored before the last five years. This field which is of increasing importance could constitute a renewal for the chemistry of chiral solvents. So far reported examples are designed either from the chiral pool (aminoacids, hydroxyacids, amines, aminoalcohols, terpenes and alkaloids) or by asymmetric synthesis; they can bear central, axial or planar chirality. Modern applications in asymmetric synthesis, enzymatic chemistry, chiral chromatography and NMR are surveyed. Their use in the field of liquid crystals and for stereoselective polymerisation are also discussed. At the end of the article, a series of tables is compiled including all the CILs described to date and their physical properties.

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