A Practical Synthesis of Macrocyclic Schiff Base Bearing Hydroxyethyl Pendants Utilizing Solubility Discrepancies

Six macrocyclic Schiff bases bearing hydroxyethyl pendants have been synthesized in high yields via [2 + 2] condensation between the rigid dialdehydes and 2-[bis(2-aminoethyl)amino]ethanol or 1-[bis(2-aminoethyl)amino]-2-propanol at 0°C for 12 hours in the CH3CN/H2O mixture. Solubility discrepancies between macrocyclic products and raw materials in selected solvents enable a facile separation and high yields, avoiding any intractable chromatographic purification. This straightforward synthetic protocol provides a relatively facile resolution with potential widespread applications for the synthesis of Schiff bases.