Tetraalkyl titanium and zirconium metal chloride catalyst systems for ethylene polymerization

Coordination polymerization of olefins has become an industrially important, yet still poorly understood enterprise. The ethylene polymerization activity of (neophyl)_nZrCl_4-n shows a twentyfold increase from n = 4 to n = 3 and a further tenfold increase to n = 2. The heterogeneous MR₄/TiCl₄ catalysts (M = Ti, R = benzyl; M = Zr, R = benzyl, neophyl) have been developed. To explore the breadth of extendability, other metal chlorides (main group and transition metal) were substituted for TiCl₄. Indeed, excess AlCl₃ or MgCl₂ and the MR₄ compounds also produced ethylene polymerization catalysts. The inactivity of corresponding (neophyl)₄Ti systems is attributed to sterics. The abovementioned catalysts highlight the necessity of alkyl and chloride ligands at the transition metal catalyst centers.