THE CONCEPT OF RACEMATES AND THE SOAI-REACTION

Abstract

The traditional concept of racemates m eans an exactly 1:1 mixture of two enantiomeric molecules. Modern analytical and catalytic/preparative discoveries, first of all the Soai-reaction, make necessary a re-evaluation of this concept. The most important aspect of such a revision is the definition of the amount of an excess of one or of the other enantiomer, originating from statistical fluctuation, which can still be „tolerated” when a substance is defined as racemate. The present paper discusses the statistical view of racemates and some related problems.