Optical Separation of Racemic Phenyl-alanine, and Structure of Complex Consisting of R-Phenylalanine and R-Mandelic Acid

The racemic phenylalanine has been separated by (R)-mandelic acid through the formation of diastereomeric molecular complex. The crystal of the title chiral complex (C8H8O3 C9H11NO2, Mr = 317.33) belongs to monoclinic, space group C2 with a = 19.391(3), b = 5.715(4), c = 15.755(3) ? b = 115.23(1), V = 1579(1) 3, Z = 4, Dc = 1.335 g/cm3, F(000) = 672, m = 0.099 mm-1, R = 0.033 and wR = 0.060 for 1278 observed reflections (I > 2s(I)). The complex consists of (R)-mandelic acid and (R)-phenylalanine in 1:1 molar ratio, and the complex molecules form layered crystal structure by self-assembly through intermolecular H-bonding between carboxyl and carboxylate of the neighboring molecules.