Quantification of the chiral recognition in electrochemically driven ion transfer across the interface water/chiral liquid

Abstract

The electrochemically driven transfer of the chiral anions of d- and l-tryptophan across the interface water/chiral liquid ( d- or l-menthol) is stereoselective, and it can be used to determine quantitatively the difference in Gibbs energies for the solvation of chiral ions in chiral liquids. The ion transfer can be achieved in a three-phase arrangement where a droplet of the chiral liquid containing decamethylferrocene as the electroactive redox probe is attached to a graphite electrode immersed in the aqueous solution containing the chiral ions.