Acid-Base Bifunctional Shell Cross-Linked Micelle Nanoreactor for One-Pot Tandem Reaction

Abstract

Shell cross-linked micelles (SCMs) containing acid sites in the shell and base sites in the core are prepared from amphiphilic poly(2-oxazoline) triblock copolymers. The materials are utilized as two-chamber nanoreactors for a prototypical acid-base bifunctional tandem deacetalization-nitroaldol reaction. The acid and base sites are localized in different regions of the micelle, allowing the two steps in the reaction sequence to largely proceed in separate compartments, akin to the compartmentalization that occurs in biological systems.