The Effect of Feeding Sequence on the Structure and Properties of the Ethylene/1-Octene Copolymer in the Semi-Continuous Polymerization Reaction System

• Published in: Polymers Vol. 16; no. 4; p. 526
• Main Authors: He, Qiqi, Zhang, Ruijun, Hu, Yuexin, Li, Junhua, Yu, Hongbo, Zheng, Yong, Qian, Jianhua
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 15.02.2024; MDPI
• Subjects: Analysis; Annealing; Chain branching; chain microstructure; Chemical composition; Chemical synthesis; Control methods; copolymer property; Copolymerization; Copolymers; Ethylene; ethylene-1-octene copolymer; feeding sequence; Mechanical properties; Methods; Microstructure; Molecular chains; Molecular weight; Molecular weight distribution; NMR; Nuclear magnetic resonance; Octenes; Polymerization; Polymers; Polyolefins; Sequences; Structure; Temperature; Tension tests; Thermal properties; China; Liaoning China; Beijing China; United States > US; Japan; copolymer property; chain microstructure; ethylene-1-octene copolymer; feeding sequence
• ISSN: 2073-4360; 2073-4360
• DOI: 10.3390/polym16040526

The performance of ethylene/1-octene copolymer primarily depends on the microstructure of the polymer chain. This study employed a new method to control the inter-distribution of hexyl chain branches directly on the backbone of the ethylene/1-octene copolymer. Three ethylene/1-octene copolymers with different inter-distributions of hexyl chain branches were synthesized using [Me Si(C Me ) (N Bu)] TiCl (Ti-CGC) by different feeding sequences in the semi-continuous polymerization reaction system. The three copolymers were named according to the feeding sequence of the materials: ethylene/1-octene/Ti-CGC (EOC), 1-octene/Ti-CGC/ethylene (OCE), and ethylene/Ti-CGC/1-octene (ECO), respectively. The structure and properties of the copolymers were characterized using HT-GPC, C-NMR, DSC, WAXD, DMA, MI, and Uniaxial Tension Test. The results showed that the feeding sequence greatly affected the comonomer distribution of the molecular chains, molecular weight, molecular weight distribution, and chemical composition of the copolymers, consequently influencing their thermal performance and mechanical properties. Thus, it is probable that one could obtain an ethylene/1-octene copolymer with designed properties by controlling the feeding sequence during the ethylene/1-octene semi-continuous copolymerization process.