Phase transfer catalysis or interfacial catalysis is a syn­ thetic technique involving transport of an organic or inorganic salt from a solid or aqueous phase into an organic liquid where reaction with an organic-soluble substrate takes place. Over the past 15 years there has been an enormous amount of effort invested in the development of this technique in organic synthe­ sis. Several books and numerous review articles have appeared summarizing applications in which low molecular weight catalysts are employed. These generally include either crown ethers or onium salts of various kinds. While the term phase transfer catalysis is relatively new, the concept of using a phasetrans­ fer agent (PTA) is much older~ Both Schnell and Morgan employed such catalysts in synthesis of polymeric species in the early 1950's. Present developments are really extensions of these early applications. It has only been within the last several years that the use of phase transfer processes have been employed in polymer synthesis and modification. Similarly, the use of polymer-bound phase transfer agents is also a recent development. These and related areas have nonetheless enjoyed explosive growth as mea­ sured by the number of publications and the variety of applica­ tions which have appeared. Several reviews dealing with these l 6 polymer-related investigations have been published.

Polymer Modification.- Chemical Modification of Polymers Via Phase Transfer Catalysis.- Chemical Modification of Chloromethylated Polystyrene with Phosphine Oxides Using Phase-Transfer Catalysis.- Phase Transfer Catalysed Polymer-Supported Wittig Reactions.- Influence of Quaternary Ammonium Salts on Cellulose Modification.- Polymer Synthesis.- Synthesis of Polyethers by Phase-Transfer Catalyzed Polycondensation.- Effect of Triethylamine on the Synthesis of Group VI B Polyethers.- Use of Phase Transfer Agents in the Synthesis of Antimony (V) Polyamines.- Synthesis of Aromatic Polyphosphoanhydrides Based on Phenylphosphonic Dichloride Employing Phase Transfer Agents.- Phase-Transfer Polycondensation of Bisphenolate Anions and 1,6-Dibromohexane.- Phase Transfer Free Radical Reactions: Polymerization of Acrylic Monomers.- Syntheses of Carbon-Carbon Chain Polymers and Polysulfides by Phase Transfer Catalyzed Polycondensation.- Anionic Polymerizations with Complex Bases and Their Derivatives.- Anionic Polymerization IX: A Review of the Use of Crown Ether as a Modifier in the Anionic Polymerization and Copolymerization of Diene.- Synthesis of Ultrahigh Molecular Weight Nylon 4 with Onium Salt and Crown Ether-Containing Catalysts.- Mechanistic Aspects.- Mechanisms of Catalysis by Polymer-Supported Quaternary Ammonium and Phosphonium Ions.- Chiral Polymer Supported Catalysts in Phase Transfer Reactions.- Polymer-Supported Optically Active Phase Transfer Catalysts.- Asymmetric Selection by Optically Active Polymers in Phase-Transfer System.- Synthetic Reactions by Gas-Liquid Phase-Transfer Catalysis.- Ion Binding and Chelating Polymers.- Ion-Binding Polyesters and Polyamides Containing THF Rings.- Ion-Binding Properties of Network Polymers with Pendant Crown Ether Ligands.- Selective Cation Binding by Polymers with Pendant Crown Ethers.- Polyoxyethylene.- Sulfur-Substituted Polyoxyethylenes. Sequential Ether-Thioether Copolymers.- Poly(Ethylene Glycol)s as Phase-Transfer Catalysts Synthesis of Derivatives.- Photo-Induced Nucleophilic Substitution of Anisoles in the Presence of Polyethylene Glycol (PEG): Usefulness of PEG on Photochemical Reactions.- Polyethylene Glycols as Oligomeric Host Solvents: Applications to Oxidation and Reduction Reactions.- Koenigs Knorr Reaction Catalyzed by Supported Crown Ethers: An Example of the Polymer Influence.- Contributors.