Process for producting ethylene-propylene block copolymer

• Main Authors: KOURA HIROYUKI, WAKAMATSU KAZUKI, KAWAMATA SHOZO, EBARA TAKESHI, SASAKI YOSHIZUMI
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 19.12.1997
• Edition: 6
• Subjects: CHEMISTRY; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON; MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS OBTAINED BY REACTIONS ONLY INVOLVINGCARBON-TO-CARBON UNSATURATED BONDS; METALLURGY; ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP

A process for producing ethylene-propylene block copolymer which comprises (1) The first step of reacting propylene or a mixture of propylene and ethylene in the presence of a catalyst composed essentially of (A) a solid catalyst component containing magnesium, titanium and a halogen as the indispensable ingredients, (B) an organoaluminum compound, and (C) a silicon compound (1) represented by the formula R R Si(OR )2, wherein R is an alicyclic hydrocarbon group of 5-20 carbon atoms and R and R are each independently a hydrocarbon group of 1-20 carbon atoms, to form a propylene homopolymer portion or an ethylene-propylene copolymer portion having an ethylene content of 3% by weight or less, in an amount corresponding to 50-95% by weight of the total block copolymer amount, and (2) the second step of reacting a mixture of ethylene and propylene with the polymer portion obtained in the first step in the presence of the aforesaid catalyst composed essentially of the components (a), (b) and (c) and in the additional presence of a silicon compound (2) represented by the formula R aSi(OR )4-a' wherein R and R are each independently a hydrocarbon group of 1-20 carbon atoms and a is a number satisfying the equation 0 </= a < 4, to obtain an ethylene-propylene block copolymer which contains an ethylene-propylene copolymer portion having an ethylene content of at least 20% by weight, in an amount corresponding to 5-50% by weight of the total block copolymer amount.