Synthesis of Main‐Chain Ionic Polymers of Chiral Imidazolidinone Organocatalysts and Their Application to Asymmetric Diels–Alder Reactions

Main‐chain ionic polymers incorporating chiral imidazolidinone moieties in the polymer main chain were successfully synthesized by the polyaddition reaction of a chiral imidazolidinone dimer with a disulfonic acid. The organocatalytic activities of these polymers were investigated in the asymmetric Diels–Alder reaction between trans‐cinnamaldehyde and 1,3‐cyclopentadiene. The catalytic performance of the polymers was found to be sensitive to the chemical structure of the disulfonate units and the imidazolidinone dimer. With the use of these heterogeneous polymeric chiral organocatalysts, enantioselectivities of up to 99% for the endo isomer were obtained. This result was higher than those obtained with corresponding monomeric and dimeric counterparts in a homogeneous solution. The polymeric chiral organocatalyst was recovered and reused several times, maintaining its high enantioselectivity.