Polymer Supported Calix[4]arene Schiff Bases: A Novel Chelating Resin for Hg²⁺and Dichromate Anions

Abstract

This article describes the synthesis and characterization of two new calix[4]arene Schiff bases and their polymeric resins. The extraction properties of these “proton switchable extractants” with alkali, transition, post transition metal cations and for dichromate anions are reported. The two new calix[4]arene based Schiff bases (5 and 6) have been synthesized from 5,17‐diformyl‐25,27‐dipropoxy‐26,28‐dihydroxycalix[4]arene (4) by treatment with 3‐amino‐methylpyridine and 1,8‐diaminooctane in two separate reaction flasks following the same procedure. Compounds 5 and 6 have been appended to a polymeric resin by treatment with Merrifield resin through a nucleophilic substitution reaction. The receptor compounds (3 and 5–8) do not extract alkali metal cations, but show some selectivity toward transition metal cations, and a particularly high selectivity to Hg2+ and Pb2+. The protonated forms of all of the calixarene‐based receptors are good extractants for transferring Cr2O7 2−/HCr2O7 − anions from an aqueous into a dichloromethane layer.