Was Bijvoet right? : sodium rubidium (+)-tartrate tetrahydrate revisited

Abstract

The first determination of the absolute configuration of an organic compound was published in 1951 on sodium rubidium (+)-tartrate tetrahydrate, Na+ Rb+ C4H4O6 2 4H2O, but the atomic coordinates are not available in the public literature. This structure has therefore been redetermined using current equipment. The most up-to-date techniques for the determination of the absolute configuration have been applied and the question posed in the title can be answered with an unequivocal ‘yes’.