Aminal Protection of Epoxide Monomer Permits the Introduction of Multiple Secondary Amine Moieties at Poly(ethylene glycol).

In contrast to acetal groups, aminal moieties are almost unknown in polymer chemistry. The aminal-protected isopropyl-hexahydro-pyrimidine glycidyl amine (PyGA) for the anionic ring-opening polymerization (AROP) is introduced. The monomer is prepared in a two-step synthesis and can be polymerized in a well-controlled manner under AROP conditions. Several poly(ethylene glycol) block and triblock copolymers are synthesized in a molecular weight range from 2 700 to 11 400 g mol-1 with up to 11 mol% PyGA. The molecular weight distributions are monomodal with low dispersity (Đ = Mw /Mn ) below 1.2. After the polymerization, the acid-labile hexahydro-pyrimidine rings can be conveniently cleaved in acidic media, liberating two secondary amines per PyGA monomer unit. The released 1,3-diamine functionalities can be addressed via post-polymerization modification and show complexation of copper(II) ions in aqueous solution. The compounds are promising for water-soluble catalyst systems, the removal of transition metals from water, and as a building block for complexing polyethers for biomedical application.