Trityl enantiopure

During the two decades after this important discovery, a tremendous amount of research has been directed toward the polymerization of sterically demanding achiral monomers with chiral initiators to create enantiomerically pure helical polymers (also known as helix-sense selective or screw-sense-selective polymerization ). These polymers, known as atropisomers, are stable conformational isomers that arise from restricted rotation about the single bonds of their main chains. Key aspects of these reactions are enantiopure initiators that begin the polymerization with a one-handed helical twist, and monomers with bulky side-chains that can maintain the helical conformation due to steric repulsion. Notable examples of this fascinating class of polymers that are configurationally achiral but conformationally chiral include [8, 38, 39] poly(trityl methacrylate), polychloral, polyisocyanates, and polyisocyanides. Important advances in anionic and metal-based enantioselective polymerization methods have been reported in recent years. 

Figure 16.9 An enantiopure trityl salt prepared as a catalyst.

Thereafter, the group of Chen (102) prepared the enantiopure trityl salt 37 and thus could support their proposed mechanism of catalysis (Figure 16.9). Since an enantiomeric excess was found, carbenium-mediated catalysis had to occur. 

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