Role of van der Waals forces in enantioselective processes

Abstract

Calculation of chiral recognition energy based on the simple model and van der Waals potential with usual van der Waals parameters indicated that the chiral recognition energy is of the order of 0.1 kcal/mol when the molecules are far away (in the attractive region) while it is of the order of 10 kcal/mol when the molecules are close to each other (in the repulsive region). Thus, this study indicates that the external forces bringing two molecules close to each other lead to quite high chiral recognition based on van der Waals forces.