Analytical and semi‐preparative enantioresolution of (RS)‐ketorolac from pharmaceutical formulation and in human plasma by HPLC

An efficient, simple, validated, analytical and semi‐preparative HPLC method has been developed for direct enantioresolution of (RS)‐Ketorolac (Ket) using monochloro‐methylated derivatives of cellulose and amylose, i.e. cellulose (tris‐3‐chloro‐4‐methylphenylcarbamate) and amylose (tris‐5‐chloro‐2‐methylphenylcarbamate) as chiral stationary phases (CSPs) with photo diode array detection at 320 nm. Enantioresolution was carried out in samples of human plasma spiked with (RS)‐Ket under normal and reversed‐phase elution modes with suitable mobile phase compositions. The effect of nature of alcohols (MeOH, EtOH, PrOH and n‐BuOH) and other solvents (MeCN and MeOH) as organic modifiers in the mobile phase was investigated on the separation performance of two CSPs in terms of retention and separation of enantiomers. The best resolution was observed on cellulose‐based CSP using EtOH, while using 2‐PrOH (15%) and amylose‐based CSP obtained the highest retention. Under reversed‐phase elution mode the best enantioseparation was observed using 30% MeCN with ammonium formate buffer. The elution order of enantiomers was ascertained by determining specific rotations. The limit of detection and quantitation values were 5 and 15.5 ng/mL for each enantiomer of (RS)‐Ket, respectively. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Chromatographic Resolution of α‐Amino Acids by (R)‐(3,3'‐Halogen Substituted‐1,1'‐binaphthyl)‐20‐crown‐6 Stationary Phase in HPLC

Three new chiral stationary phases (CSPs ) for high‐performance liquid chromatography were prepared from R ‐(3,3'‐halogen substituted‐1,1'‐binaphthyl)‐20‐crown‐6 (halogen = Cl, Br and I). The experimental results showed that R ‐(3,3'‐dibromo‐1,1'‐binaphthyl)‐20‐crown‐6 ( CSP ‐1 ) possesses more prominent enantioselectivity than the two other halogen‐substituted crown ether derivatives. All twenty‐one α ‐amino acids have different degrees of separation on R ‐(3,3'‐dibromo‐1,1'‐binaphthyl)‐20‐crown‐6‐based CSP ‐1 at room temperature. The enantioselectivity of CSP ‐1 is also better than those of some commercial R ‐(1,1'‐binaphthyl)‐20‐crown‐6 derivatives. Both the separation factors (α ) and the resolution (R _s) are better than those of commercial crown ether‐based CSPs [CROWNPAK CR (+) from Daicel] under the same conditions for asparagine, threonine, proline, arginine, serine, histidine and valine, which cannot be separated by commercial CR (+). This study proves the commercial usefulness of the R ‐(3,3'‐dibromo‐1,1'‐binaphthyl)‐20‐crown‐6 chiral stationary phase.     

Synthesis and chiroptical properties of chiral binaphthyl‐containing polyfluorene derivatives

New chiral binaphthyl‐containing polyfluorene (PF) derivatives, PFOH , PFMOM , and PFP , bearing different binaphthyl units ((S)‐2,2′‐bis(methoxymethoxy)‐1,1′‐binaphthyl for PFMOM , (S)‐1,1′‐binaphthyl‐2,2′‐diol for PFOH , and (S)‐2,2′‐bis(diphenylphosphinyl)‐1,1′‐binaphthyl for PFP ) in the backbone have been designed and synthesized through Pd‐catalyzed Suzuki polycondensation. Their properties have been investigated in detail by ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, TGA, DSC, UV–vis, photoluminescence (in solutions, in thin films before and after annealing), and circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopic methods compared with poly(9,9‐dihexylfluorene‐2,7‐diyl) ( PF ). The resulting copolymers possessed excellent solubility in organic solvents and emitted strong blue light. The phosphine oxide‐containing copolymers PFP and PFMOM exhibited higher quantum yields and better thermal spectral stability in comparison with PF . All the copolymers exhibited obviously the linearly polarized photoluminescent properties both in solutions and in solid states. High emission polarization ratios (R_PL) of PFP were observed with no obvious decrease upon thermal annealing. In addition, investigation of the CD spectroscopic properties of these copolymers in THF solutions indicated that the chirality of the binaphthyls could be transferred to the whole PF backbone. All these results demonstrated that introduction of the chiral binaphthyls, particularly BINAPO, into the backbone could effectively improve the performances of the copolymers. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011     

The Study of Separation and Thermodynamics of Adsorption of the Enantiomers of Ethofumasate on a Modified Cellulose

Abstract

Cellulose and cellulose derivatives are biopolymers that are often used as stationary phases for the separation of enantiomers. Describing the mechanism of such separations is a difficult task due to the complexity of these phases. In the present study, direct enantiomeric resolution of ethofumesate has been achieved, using hexane as the mobile phase with various alcoholic modifiers on cellulose tri(3,5‐dimethylphenylcarbamate) chiral stationary phase (CDMPC CSP). The influence of the mobile phase composition and the column temperature on the chiral separation was studied. It was found that at a constant temperature and within a certain range of alcohol modifier concentration, the conformation of the polymeric phase, and the selective adsorption sites were not affected by alcohol modifier concentration. The type and the concentration of the alcoholic modifiers influenced the retention factor and the separation factor. Ethofumesate gained the best enantioseparation using sec‐butanol as alcoholic modifier at 25°C with α‐value 1.70. And the separation factor decreased with the increase of the column temperature. The van't Hoff plots were linear (R ²>0.96) for ethofumesate from 25°C to 50°C. That showed the enantioselective interactions do not change over the temperature range studied. Furthermore the values of ΔH° and ΔS° were both negative, which indicated an enthalpy‐driven separation. And the possible chiral recognition mechanism of the analyte and CDMPC was discussed. It was found that hydrogen bonding plays an important role on enantioseparation of CDMPC CSP. The inclusion and fitness of solute shape in the chiral cavity significantly contributed to the enantioseparation of solute.     

Synthesis of Some Novel Amino Phenols with Octahydro‐1,1′‐binaphthyl Backbone

A series of new octahydro‐1,1′‐binaphthyl derivatives, namely (R)‐(+)‐2‐(N, N‐dialkylamino)‐2′‐hydroxy‐5,5′,6,6′,7, 7′,8,8′‐octahydro‐1,1′‐binaphthyls (7,9), have been synthesized. Their asymmetric induction for enantioselective addition of Et₂Zn to benzaldehyde was examined and it was found that (R)‐(+)‐2‐(N‐cyclohexyl‐N‐methylamino)‐2′‐hydroxy‐5, 5′,6,6′,7,7′,8,8′‐octahydro‐1,1′‐binaphthyl (9c) exhibited the best asymmetric induction among the ligands prepared, up to 55% ee of 1‐phenylpropanol being obtained.     

Optimization of the HPLC enantioseparation of 3,3′‐dibromo‐5,5′‐disubstituted‐4,4′‐bipyridines using immobilized polysaccharide‐based chiral stationary phases

The HPLC enantioseparation of nine atropisomeric 3,3′,5,5′‐tetrasubstituted‐4,4′‐bipyridines was performed in normal and polar organic (PO) phase modes using two immobilized polysaccharide‐based chiral columns, namely, Chiralpak IA and Chiralpak IC. The separation of all racemic analytes, the effect of the chiral selector, and mobile phase (MP) composition on enantioseparation and the enantiomer elution order (EEO) were studied. The beneficial effect of nonstandard solvents, such as tetrahydrofuran (THF), dichloromethane (DCM), and methyl t‐butyl ether on enantioseparation was investigated. All selected 4,4′‐bipyridines were successfully enantioseparated on Chiralpak IA under normal or PO MPs with separation factors from 1.14 to 1.70 and resolutions from 1.3 to 6.5. Two bipyridines were enantioseparated at the multimilligram level on Chiralpak IA. Differently, Chiralpak IC was less versatile toward the considered class of compounds and only five bipyridines out of nine could be efficiently separated. In particular, on these columns, the ternary mixture n‐heptane/THF/DCM (90:5:5) as MP had a positive effect on enantioseparation. An interesting phenomenon of reversal of the EEO depending on the composition of the MP for the 3,3′‐dibromo‐5,5′‐bis‐(E)‐phenylethenyl‐4,4′‐bipyridine along with an exceptional enantioseparation for the 3,3′‐dibromo‐5,5′‐bis‐ferrocenylethynyl‐4,4′‐bipyridine (α = 8.33, R_s = 30.6) were observed on Chiralpak IC.     

Super/Subcritical Fluid Chromatography Separations with Four Synthetic Polymeric Chiral Stationary Phases

New synthetic polymeric chiral selectors were developed recently as chiral stationary phases. They were tested with supercritical fluid mobile phases made of CO₂ plus an alcohol modifier and 0.2% v/v trifluoroacetic acid. The polymeric N,N′-(1S,2S)-1,2-cyclohexanediyl-bis-2-propenamide (P-CAP), the polymeric N,N′-[(1R,2R)]-1,2-diphenyl-1,2-ethanediyl] bis-2-propenamide (P-CAP-DP), the polymeric trans-9,10-dihydro-9,10-ethanoanthracene-(11S,12S)-11,12-dicarboxylic acid bis-4-vinylphenylamide (DEABV) and the polymeric N,N′-[(1R,2R)-1,2-diphenyl-1,2-ethanediyl] bis-4-vinylbenzamide (DPEVB) were bonded to 5 μm silica particles and used to prepare four columns that were tested with a set of 88 chiral compounds with a wide variety of chemical functionalities. All 88 test compounds were separated on one or more of these “related” polymeric CSPs. Forty-three enantiomeric pairs were separated in SFC conditions by only one of the CSPs. Twenty pairs were separated by two CSPs and 18 and 7 enantiomeric pairs were separated by 3 and all 4 CSPs, respectively. The three P-CAP, P-CAP-DP and DEABV CSPs have equivalent success being able to separate 49 enantiomeric pairs of the studied set with respectively 12, 14 and 20 at baseline (R _s  > 1.5). The DPEVB CSP was significantly less efficient separating only 18 chiral compounds with only one at baseline. The great advantage of the SFC mobile phases is the rapid separation, witch most achieved in less than 5 min.     

Separation of the enantiomers of 2-phenylcyclopropanecarboxylate esters by capillary gas chromatography on derivatized cyclodextrin stationary phases

Summary Separation of the enantiomers of 2-phenylcyclopropanecarboxylate esters has been investigated on derivatized cyclodextrin chiral stationary phases (CD CSPs) to enable direct determination of the enantiomeric purity of the products of enantioselective cyclopropanation. Four stereoisomers of these chiral compounds could be resolved to baseline on permethylated β-cyclodextrin CSP. Some unusual phenomena, iso-enthalpy retention behavior and entropically driven chiral separation, were observed for the enantioseparation of 2-phenylcyclo-propanecarboxylates on the CD CSPs. Thermodynamic parameters were evaluated and an enthalpy-entropy compensation effect was observed forn-alkyl esters of 2-phenylcyclopropanecarboxylate separated on CD CSPs.     

Enantioseparation of 3‐phenyllactic acid by chiral ligand exchange countercurrent chromatography

3‐Phenyllactic acid is an antimicrobial compound with broad‐spectrum activity against various bacteria and fungus. The observed difference in pharmacological activity between optical isomeric 3‐phenyllactic acid necessitates a method for enantioseparation. Chiral ligand exchange countercurrent chromatography was investigated for the enantioseparation of 3‐phenyllactic acid with a synthesized chiral ligand. A two‐phase solvent system was composed of n‐butanol/hexane/water (0.4:0.6:1, v/v/v) to which N‐n‐dodecyl‐l ‐hydroxyproline was added to the organic phase as chiral ligand and cupric acetate was added in the aqueous phase as a transitional metal ion. The influence factors were optimized by enantioselective liquid–liquid extraction. Baseline enantioseparation of racemic 3‐phenyllactic acid by analytical high‐speed countercurrent chromatography was achieved. The optical purities of enantiomeric 3‐phenyllactic acid reached 99.0%, as determined by chiral high‐performance liquid chromatography.     

新型含苯并噻唑α-氨基膦酸酯类化合物在淀粉类手性固定相上的液相色谱分离

本文运用涂敷型(Chiralpak AD-H)和键合型(Chiralpak IA)两种淀粉类手性固定相高效液相色谱法,进行了新型含苯并噻唑α-氨基膦酸酯类化合物的手性分离。从色谱分离的保留因子(k)、分离系数(α)和分离度(Rs)三个方面考察了两种类型色谱柱的分离性能,上述化合物在Chiralpak IA柱上能够得到较好的基线分离。同时,讨论了温度、流动相极性和目标分析物的结构等因素对Chiralpak IA柱分离性能的影响。由于键合型固定相较稳定的性能,使某些非常规的溶剂(如THF)成功地应用于手性α-氨基膦酸酯类化合物的分离。     

Synthesis and chirooptical properties of optically active poly(ester imide)s based on axially asymmetric 1,1′‐binaphthyls

A series of optically active poly(ester imide)s (PEsI's) has been synthesized by the polycondensation reactions of new axially asymmetric dianhydrides, that is, (R)‐2,2′‐bis(3,4‐dicarboxybenzoyloxy)‐1,1′‐binaphthyl dianhydride and (S)‐2,2′‐bis(3,4‐dicarboxybenzoyloxy)‐1,1′‐binaphthyl dianhydride, and various diamines with aromatic, semiaromatic, and aliphatic structures. The polymers have inherent viscosities of 0.45–0.70 dL/g, very good solubility in common organic solvents, glass‐transition temperatures of 124–290 °C, and good thermal stability. Wide‐angle X‐ray crystallography of these polymers shows no crystal diffraction. In comparison with model compounds, an enhanced optical rotatory power has been observed for the repeat unit of optically active PEsI's based on aromatic diamines, and it has been attributed to a collaborative asymmetric perturbation of chiral 1,1′‐binaphthyls along the rigid backbones. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 4318–4326, 2004     

Evaluation and Comparison of a 3,5‐Dimethylphenyl Isocyanate Teicoplanin with Phenyl Isocyanate Teicoplanin Chiral Stationary Phase Using RP‐HPLC

HPLC enantiomeric separations of 8 α‐amino acids were achieved using two self‐made chiral stationary phases (CSP)–phenyl isocyanate teicoplanin (Phe‐TE) and 3,5‐dimethylphenyl isocyanate teicoplanin (DMP‐TE), using reversed phase mobile phases. The Phe‐TE or the DMP‐TE CSP was prepared from the TE using derivative agents, phenyl isocyanate or 3,5‐dimethylphenyl isocyanate, respectively. The chromatographic results were given as the retention, selectivity, resolution factor and the enantioselective free energy difference corresponding to the separation of the two enantiomers. The effect of pH, organic modifier type and amount were discussed, and the stereoselectivities for two TE‐based CSPs were compared. The chiral selectivity factor for six α‐amino acids on DMP‐TE is somewhat bigger than that on Phe‐TE CSP under reversed phase (RP) mode. Comparison of the enantiomeric separations using self‐made Phe‐TE and DMP‐TE was conducted to gain a better understanding of the chiral recognition mechanism of the macrocyclic glycopeptide CSP.     

New single isomer negatively charged β‐cyclodextrin derivatives as chiral selectors in capillary electrophoresis

To improve resolution power of chiral selector and enantiomeric peak efficiency in CE, single isomer negatively charged β‐CD derivatives, mono(6‐deoxy‐6‐sulfoethylthio)‐β‐CD (SET‐β‐CD) bearing one negative charge and mono[6‐deoxy‐6‐(6‐sulfooxy‐5,5‐bis‐sulfooxymethyl)hexylthio]‐β‐CD (SMHT‐β‐CD) carrying three negative charges, were synthesized. The structure of these two β‐CD derivatives was confirmed by ¹H NMR and MS. SET‐β‐CD and SMHT‐β‐CD successfully resolved the enantiomers of several basic model compounds. SMHT‐β‐CD provided for a significantly greater enantioseparation than SET‐β‐CD at lower concentrations. This appears to be due to the higher binding affinity of SMHT‐β‐CD to the model compounds and the wider separation window resulting from an increased countercurrent mobility of the selector. Overall, the new chiral selectors provided enantioseparations with high peak efficiency while avoiding peak distortion due to polydispersive and electrodispersive effects. The information obtained from an apparent binding constant study suggested that the enantioseparation of the model compounds followed the predictions of charged resolving agent migration model and that the observed degree of enantioseparation difference were due to the magnitude of differences in both enantiomer‐chiral selector binding affinities (ΔK) and the mobilities of the complexed enantiomers (Δμ_c).     

Enantioseparation of aldols by high‐performance liquid chromatography on polysaccharide‐based chiral stationary phases that bear chlorinated substituents

Two families of aldols, obtained from the condensation of aromatic aldehydes with cyclohexanone or acetone (ten examples in each group), were analyzed by high‐performance liquid chromatography in normal phase elution mode on three polysaccharide‐based chiral stationary phases of the Lux series, namely, Lux Cellulose‐2, Lux Cellulose‐4 and Lux Amylose‐2, which share the common feature of chlorinated substituents in the chiral selectors. Following simple optimization steps, the enantioseparation of all aldols derived from cyclohexanone was achieved and the highest values of separation factor (α, 1.32 < α < 2.20) and resolution (R_s, 4.5 < R_s <17.2) were observed on Lux Cellulose‐2, with the only exception of the 4‐nitro‐substituted derivative that was better resolved on Lux Cellulose‐4. On the contrary, Lux Amylose‐2 was the best choice for aldols derived from acetone and only specific analytes in this group were resolved on the cellulose‐based supports. A variable‐temperature study of selected compounds allowed us to determine thermodynamic parameters of the enantioseparation process, which was enthalpy‐controlled in all the cases except one.     

Diversity‐Oriented Synthesis of Novel 2′‐Aminospiro[11H‐indeno[1,2‐b]quinoxaline‐11,4′‐[4H]pyran] Derivatives via a One‐Pot Four‐Component Reaction

A sequential one‐pot four‐component reaction for the efficient synthesis of novel 2′‐aminospiro[11H‐indeno[1,2‐b]quinoxaline‐11,4′‐[4H]pyran] derivatives 5 in the presence of AcONH₄ as a neutral, inexpensive, and dually activating catalyst is described (Scheme 1). The syntheses are achieved by reacting ninhydrin ( 1 ) with benzene‐1,2‐diamines 2 to give indenoquinoxalines, which are trapped in situ by malono derivatives 2 and various α‐methylenecarbonyl compounds 4 through cyclization, providing the multifunctionalized 2′‐aminospiro[11H‐indeno[1,2‐b]quinoxaline‐11,4′‐[4H]pyran] analogs 5 . This chemistry provides an efficient and promising synthetic way of proceeding for the diversity‐oriented construction of the spiro[indenoquinoxalino‐pyran] skeleton.     

Organocatalytic Asymmetric Conjugate Addition of 3‐Monosubstituted Oxindoles to (E)‐1,4‐Diaryl‐2‐buten‐1,4‐diones: A Strategy for the Indirect Enantioselective Furanylation and Pyrrolylation of 3‐Alkyloxindoles

An asymmetric conjugate addition of 3‐monosubstituted oxindoles to a range of (E)‐1,4‐diaryl‐2‐buten‐1,4‐diones, catalyzed by commercially available cinchonine, is described. This organocatalytic asymmetric reaction affords a broad range of 3,3′‐disubstituted oxindoles that contain a 1,4‐dicarbonyl moiety and vicinal quaternary and tertiary stereogenic centers in high‐to‐excellent yields (up to 98 %), with excellent diastereomeric and moderate‐to‐high enantiomeric ratios (up to 99:1 and 95:5, respectively). Subsequently, cyclization of the 1,4‐dicarbonyl moiety in the resultant Michael adducts under different Paal–Knorr conditions results in two new kinds of 3,3′‐disubstituted oxindoles—3‐furanyl‐ and 3‐pyrrolyl‐3‐alkyl‐oxindoles—in high yields and good enantioselectivities. Notably, the studies presented here sufficiently confirm that this two‐step strategy of sequential conjugate addition/Paal–Knorr cyclization is not only an attractive method for the indirect enantioselective heteroarylation of 3‐alkyloxindoles, but also opens up new avenues toward asymmetric synthesis of structurally diverse 3,3′‐disubstituted oxindole derivatives.     

Optically Active Helical Poly[(S)‐3‐vinyl‐2,2′‐dihydroxy‐1,1′‐binaphthyl]: New Ligand for Asymmetric Addition of Diethylzinc to Aryl Aldehyde

Poly[(S)‐3‐vinyl‐2,2′‐dihydroxy‐1,1′‐binaphthyl] (L*) was obtained by taking off the protecting groups of poly[(S)‐3‐vinyl‐2,2′‐bis(methoxymethoxy)‐1,1′‐binaphthyl] (poly‐ 1 ). L* was proved to keep a stable helical conformation in solution. The application of helical L* in the asymmetric addition of diethylzinc to aldehydes has been studied. The catalytic system employing 10 mol% of L* and 150 mol% of Ti(OⁱPr)₄ was found to promote the addition of diethylzinc to a wide range of aromatic aldehydes, giving up to 99% enantiomeric excess (ee) and up to 93% yield of the corresponding secondary alcohol at 0°C. The chiral polymer can be easily recovered and reused without loss of catalytic activity as well as enantioselectivity.     

Synthesis of a Novel C2‐Symmetric Bis‐oxazoline (=Bis[4,5‐dihydrooxazole]) and Its Application as Chiral Ligand in Asymmetric Transition Metal Catalysis

The new C₂‐symmetric bis‐oxazoline (=bis[4,5‐dihydrooxazole]) 2 with a chiral trans‐(2R,3R)‐2,3‐bis(3,5‐diphenylphenyl)cyclopropylidene (=trans‐(2R,3R)‐2,3‐bis([1,1′: 3′,1″‐terphenyl]‐5′‐yl)cyclopropylidene) backbone was efficiently synthesized (Scheme). All synthetic steps were easy to perform and led to the desired product in good overall yields. Compound 2 was tested and compared as ligand in several enantioselective catalytic reactions such as palladium(0)‐catalyzed enantioselective allylic alkylations and copper(I)‐catalyzed enantioselective cyclopropanations and aziridinations.     

A novel C2 symmetric chiral stationary phase with N‐[(4‐Methylphenyl)sulfonyl]‐l‐leucine as chiral side chains

In this study, a series of chiral stationary phases based on N‐[(4‐methylphenyl)sulfonyl]‐l ‐leucine amide, whose enantiorecognition property has never been studied, were synthesized. Their enantioseparation abilities were chromatographically evaluated by 67 enantiomers. The chiral stationary phase derived from N‐[(4‐methylphenyl)sulfonyl]‐l ‐leucine showed much better enantioselectivities than that based on N‐(4‐methylbenzoyl)‐l ‐leucine amide. The construction of C₂ symmetric chiral structure greatly improved the enantiorecognition performance of the stationary phase. The C₂ symmetric chiral stationary phase exhibited superior enantioresolutions to other chiral stationary phases for most of the chiral analytes, especially for the chiral analytes with C₂ symmetric structures. By comparing the enantioseparations of the enantiomers with similar structures, the importance of hydrogen bond interaction, π–π interaction, and steric hindrance on enantiorecognition was elucidated. The enantiorecognition mechanism of trans‐N,N′‐(1,2‐diphenyl‐1,2‐ethanediyl)bis‐acetamide, which had an excellent separation factor on the C₂ symmetric chiral stationary phase, was investigated by ¹H‐NMR spectroscopy and 2D ¹H‐¹H nuclear overhauser enhancement spectroscopy.     

Synthesis of dendronized,chiral conjugated polymers with appendant Fréchet‐type dendrons

New chiral binaphthyl‐based polyarylenes [(S)‐ 3a and (S)‐ 3b ] with appendant Fréchet‐type poly(aryl ether) dendrons (first generation and second generation) were synthesized with Suzuki polycondensation from chiral (S)‐6,6′‐dibromo‐2,2′‐didendron‐substituted 1,1′‐binaphthyl derivatives and p‐phenylene diboronic acid. The polymers were studied with circular dichroism, fluorescence, and ultraviolet–visible spectra. Laser light scattering measurements of (S)‐ 3a and (S)‐ 3b showed that their weight‐average molecular weights were 2.39 × 10⁵ and 1.09 × 10⁴, respectively. The specific optical rotation [α]_D was ?59.6 for (S)‐ 3a and ?62.7 for (S)‐ 3b . These dendronized conjugated polymers exhibited good thermal stability. The glass‐transition temperatures and the initial decomposition temperatures were 187.5 and 265.3 °C for (S)‐ 3a and 173.8 and 308.9 °C for (S)‐ 3b , respectively. (S)‐ 3a and (S)‐ 3b had high fluorescence quantum efficiencies, 87 and 91%, respectively, in tetrahydrofuran. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 40: 1167–1172, 2002