Process for the preparation of a polymeric product with a catalyst consisting of an ion pair

• Main Authors: HLATKY, GREGORY GEORGE, TURNER, HOWARD WILLIAM
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French; German
• Published: 05.01.2005
• Edition: 7
• Subjects: ACYCLIC, CARBOCYCLIC OR HETEROCYCLIC COMPOUNDS CONTAININGELEMENTS OTHER THAN CARBON, HYDROGEN, HALOGEN, OXYGEN, NITROGEN,SULFUR, SELENIUM OR TELLURIUM; CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROCESSES, e.g. CATALYSIS OR COLLOIDCHEMISTRY; CHEMISTRY; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON; MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS OBTAINED BY REACTIONS ONLY INVOLVINGCARBON-TO-CARBON UNSATURATED BONDS; METALLURGY; ORGANIC CHEMISTRY; ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; THEIR RELEVANT APPARATUS; TRANSPORTING

A catalyst is prepared by combining a first compound consisting of a bis(cyclopentadienyl)zirconium compound having one of the following general formulae:Wherein:(A-Cp) is either (Cp)(Cp*) or Cp-A'-Cp* and Cp and Cp* are the same or different substituted or unsubstituted cyclopentadienyl radicals;A' is a covalent bridging group;L is an olefin, diolefin or aryne ligand;Zr is zirconium;X1 and X2 are, independently, selected from the group consisting of hydride radicals, hydrocarbyl radicals, substituted-hydrocarbyl radicals, organometalloid radicals and the like;X'1 and X'2 are joined and bound to the zirconium atom to form a metallacycle, in which the zirconium, X'1 and X'2 form a hydrocarbocyclic ring containing from about 3 to about 20 carbon atoms; andR is a substituent on one of the cyclopentadienyl radicals which is also bound to the zirconium atom. With a second compound comprising a cation capable of donating a proton and a bulky, labile anion containing a single boron atom, and a plurality of aromatic radicals capable of stabilizing the zirconium cation formally having a coordination number of 3 and a valence of +4 which is formed as a result of the combination, said second compound having the general formula:         [L'-H]+[BAr1Ar2X3X4]-Wherein:L' is a neutral Lewis base;H is a hydrogen atom;[L'-H]+ is a Bronsted acid;B is boron in a valence state of 3;Ar1 and Ar2 are the same or different aromatic or substituted-aromatic hydrocarbon radicals which may be linked to each other through a stable bridging group; andX3 and X4 are, independently, selected from the group consisting of hydride radicals, halide radicals, hydrocarbyl radicals, substituted-hydrocarbyl radicals, organometalloid radicals and the like. Many of the catalysts thus formed are stable and isolable and may be recovered and stored. The catalysts may be preformed and then used to polymerize olefins, diolefins and/or acetylenically unsaturated compounds either alone or in combination with each other or with other monomers or the catalysts may be formed in situ during polymerization by adding the separate components to the polymerization reaction. The catalyst will be formed when the two components are combined in a suitable solvent or diluent at a temperature within the range from about -100°C to about 300°C. The catalysts thus prepared afford better control of polymer molecular weight and are not subject to equilibrium reversal. The catalysts thus produced are also less pyrophoric than the more conventional Ziegler-Natta olefin polymerization catalysts.