A Triazole Organocatalyst with Spiropyrrolidine Framework and its Application to the Catalytic Asymmetric Addition of Nitromethane to α,β‐Unsaturated Aldehydes

A series of new water-compatible "spiropyrrolidine triazole" catalysts was designed and synthesized. The asymmetric Michael addition of nitromethane and alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes in an aqueous system was investigated to evaluate these new catalysts, and the resulting adducts were obtained with excellent enantioselectivity (up to 95.5% ee) and moderate to good yield (63-88%).