Solid synthetic advantages

In addition to the insoluble polymers described above, soluble polymers, such as non-cross-linked PS and PEG have proven useful for synthetic applications. However, since synthesis on soluble supports is more difficult to automate, these polymers are not used as extensively as insoluble beads. Soluble polymers offer most of the advantages of both homogeneous-phase chemistry (lack of diffusion phenomena and easy monitoring) and solid-phase techniques (use of excess reagents and ease of isolation and purification of products). Separation of the functionalized matrix is achieved by either precipitation (solvent or heat), membrane filtration, or size-exclusion chromatography [98,99]. 

Soluble support-based synthetic approaches offer the advantages of both homogeneous solution-phase chemistry (high reactivity, ease of analysis) and solid-phase synthesis (large excess of reagents, simple product isolation and purification) [98,99]. As a representative example, PEG, one of the most widely used soluble polymers, has good solubility in most organic solvents (i.e., dichloromethane, acetonitrile, dimethylformamide, and toluene), but it... 

In preliminary studies various metal salts such as PdCl2 were attached to the ligands and the complexes characterized by NMR spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography. Typical examples are the palladium complexes (32)—(44) (Scheme 9).66 The catalytic profiles of these and other transition metal complexes prepared by this method still need to be defined. Moreover, solid-phase synthetic versions would be advantageous, and this may well be possible via the (protected) phenol function. 

Asymmetric catalysis provides access to several synthetically important compounds, and immobilized catalysts together with solid-supported chiral ligands have been equally instrumental. Chiral ligands immobilized on a solid support provide the advantage of being rapidly removable post-reaction while retaining their activity for further applications [139]. 

The unique ability of crown ethers to form stable complexes with various cations has been used to advantage in such diverse processes as isotope separations (Jepson and De Witt, 1976), the transport of ions through artificial and natural membranes (Tosteson, 1968) and the construction of ion-selective electrodes (Ryba and Petranek, 1973). On account of their lipophilic exterior, crown ether complexes are often soluble even in apolar solvents. This property has been successfully exploited in liquid-liquid and solid-liquid phase-transfer reactions. Extensive reviews deal with the synthetic aspects of the use of crown ethers as phase-transfer catalysts (Gokel and Dupont Durst, 1976 Liotta, 1978 Weber and Gokel, 1977 Starks and Liotta, 1978). Several studies have been devoted to the identification of the factors affecting the formation and stability of crown-ether complexes, and many aspects of this subject have been discussed in reviews (Christensen et al., 1971, 1974 Pedersen and Frensdorf, 1972 Izatt et al., 1973 Kappenstein, 1974). 

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