Step‐growth polymerization of 5‐[(9,10‐dihydro‐9,10‐ethanoanthracene‐11,12‐dicarboximido)‐3‐methylbutanoyl‐amino]isophthalic acid with aromatic diols

cis‐9,10‐dihydro‐9,10‐ethanoanthracene‐11,12‐dicarboxylic acid anhydride ( 1 ) was converted to imide acid ( 2 ) by reaction with S‐valine. Compound 2 was converted to the acid chloride ( 3 ) by reaction with thionyl chloride and then treated with 5‐aminoisophthalic acid in dry N,N‐dimethylacetamide to obtain 5‐(9,10‐dihydro‐9,10‐ethanoanthracene‐11,12‐dicarboximido)‐3‐methylbutanoylamino]isophthalic acid ( 4 ). Direct step‐growth polymerization of this novel chiral diacid monomer 4 with a series of different diols in a system of tosyl chloride, pyridine, and N,N‐dimethylformamide was carried out. The optically active polyesters (PEs) were obtained with good yield and moderate inherent viscosity ranging from 0.23 to 0.48 dL/g. The resulting polymers were characterized with FTIR, ¹H‐NMR, and elemental analysis techniques. The prepared PEs showed good thermal stability up to 320°C as measured by thermogravimetric analysis. Specific rotation experiments demonstrated the induction of optical activity due to successful insertion of S‐valine in the structure of pendant groups. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010