SOLID-PHASE SYNTHESIS OF OLIGOETHERS - SOLUBLE POLYMER MODEL STUDIES

A soluble chloromethylated polystyrene has been used as a support for the stepwise synthesis of oligoethers. The building block was the monotrityl ether of tetraethylene glycol, and coupling, deprotection, activation and elongation steps have been successfully developed. The progress of reactions has been demonstrated by elemental analysis of the polymer and FTi.r. spectral analysis. Most powerful, however, has been H-1 n.m.r. spectroscopy, made possible by the soluble nature of the polymer. While successive reactions on the polymer appear to be highly efficient, work-up and isolation inevitably result in loss of polymer mass, and preclude this from being a viable methodology for scale-up.