J. Am. Chem. SOC. termediate in MTG chemistry, but the observation that 1 can form in HZSM-5 from a known MTG intermediate removes a major objection to mechanisms such as those in Scheme I. Furthermore, with the ability to generate significant quantities of 1 in HZSM-5, it should be possible to further explore these mechanisms.We report the observation of helix-sense reversal of linear chloral oligomers (degree of polymerization, DP = 4-6) in solution by NMR spectroscopy and determination of the inversion barrier, which has been found to be dependent on DP.Some synthetic polymers such as polychloral,* poly(triphenylmethyl metha~rylate),~ and poly(tert-butyl i~ocyanide)~ are known to show optical activity arising entirely from conformational asymmetry (macromolecular asymmetry) when the polymers are prepared by helix-sense selective polymerization. The helix of the optically active polymers seems to be rigid in s o l~t i o n~~~ or slowly undergoes racemization to a nearly 1:l mixture of the rightand left-handed helices.' The helical conformation of polyisocyanates is less stable, and consequently, right-and left-handed states exist In equilibrium.* Although the one-handed helicity
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.