Enzyme recycling does not influence the enantioselectivity of the Pseudomonas cepacia lipase-catalyzed acylation of a racemic alcohol in organic solvents

The enantioselectivity of the transesterification of racemic 2-methyl-3-phenyl-1-propanol 1 with vinyl acetate catalyzed by Pseudomonas cepacia lipase does not significantly change in benzene after four reactions using the same preparation of enzyme, whereas in chloroform the process becomes slower after the second reaction, the enantioselectivity being virtually unaffected.