Cyclic Aromatic Polyamides via the Triphenylphosphite Method

5‐tert‐Butyl‐isophthalic acid (TIPA) was polycondensed with three different aromatic diamines by means of triphenylphosphite (TPP) and pyridine. The resulting polyamides were characterized by solution viscosities and MALDI‐TOF mass spectra (m.s.). These m.s. revealed significant fractions of cyclic oligo‐ and polyamides in all samples. In polyamides of high molecular weight, only cycles were detectable (observed up to masses of 13,000 Da). Three poly(amide‐imide)s were prepared by TPP‐mediated polycondensation of trimellitic anhydride (TMA) and three aromatic diamines. Although relatively high molar masses were obtained, the MALDI‐TOF m.s. displayed the peaks of linear chains in addition to those of cyclic polymers. The results together suggest that the side reactions mainly occur at the amino endgroups. #Part 40 of the series “Macrocycles.”