Isolation of the saddle and crown conformers of cyclotriveratrylene (CTV) oxime

The oxime of cyclotriveratrylene (CTV) has been prepared and the individual crown and saddle conformers were isolated and characterized. The equilibrium constant was measured in CDCl3 and in DMSO-d6 and was shown to favor the crown conformer by an order of magnitude in DMSO-d6, relative to an approximately equal mixture at equilibrium in CDCl3. The time course for interconversion of the saddle to the crown was measured by 1H NMR and the t1/2 of the saddle was determined to be 2.45 h in CDCl3 at 25 °C, and 3.71 h in DMSO-d6.