Polymer Amplified Enantioselectivity in the Fluorescent Recognition of Prolinol.

A 1,1'-bi-2-naphthol (BINOL)-aldehyde-based polymer has been synthesized that exhibits enantioselective fluorescent enhancement toward prolinol. It is found that the polymer shows greatly amplified enantioselectivity over the parent small-molecule sensor under the same conditions. This is attributed to the photoinduced electron transfer processes between the BINOL units in the polymer chain as well as the different steric environment provided by the polymer.