Poly(ethylene glycol)-supported chiral imidazolidin-4-one: An efficient organic catalyst for the enantioselective Diels-Alder cycloaddition

A tyrosine-derived imidazolidin-4-one was immobilized on a modified poly(ethylene glycol) and converted in situ into a soluble polymer-supported catalyst for the enantioselective Diels-Alder cycloaddition of acrolein to 1,3-cyclohexadiene (up to 92% ee) and 2,3-dimethyl-1,3-butadiene (73% ee). Catalyst recycling (up to four cycles) was accompanied by some loss of the chemical efficiency and marginal erosion of the enantioselectivity.