Hydroxyl groups at C1–C2 of glucose (in the pyranose form in water) are deprotonated by the [B(OH)4] borate ion, resulting in the formation of the sugar borate ester complex. It is accompanied by the elimination of two water molecules, which remain coordinated to borate (Fig. 3, Intermediate-II). As a result, borate forms a bidentate complex with both O1 and O2 of glucose. Next, the active defect site (Sn–OH) of Sn-beta abstracts a proton from the water molecule, which is coordinated to borate, partially destabilizing the sugar–borate linkage at C1 carbon, leading to the subsequent
opening of the glucose ring (Intermediate-III). Since the ring opening is water assisted and occurs in the presence of borate, the activation enthalpy (6.2 kcal/mol, TSI) is lower than what is reported before for Sn-beta [30]. This further confirms that the ring opening is a water-assisted process [39]. Subsequently, back donation of the proton from Sn–OH2 to O5 of the acyclic glucose completes the ring opening (Intermediate-IV).