Novel synthetic strategy of developing isospecific unbridged metallocene system for propylene polymerization

INOR 283

Seong Kyun Kim, hansol@kaist.ac.kr, Hwa Kyu Kim, shooting_star@kaist.ac.kr, Min Hyung Lee, lmh74@kaist.ac.kr, Seung Woong Yoon, swyoon@hpc.co.kr, and Youngkyu Do, ykdo@kaist.ac.kr. Department of Chemistry, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 373-1 Guseong-dong, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, South Korea

Group 4 metallocene catalyst systems have been well established in olefin polymerization. In particular, chiral ansa metallocene systems have been intensively investigated to achieve stereochemical control of propylene polymerization by varying the ligand structure. On the other hand, in most cases, unbridged metallocenes give atactic microstructure for polypropylene due to free ligand rotation. When we consider the relative synthetic easiness of unbridged metallocenes compared to ansa-metallocenes, it is still of great interest to develop unbridged metallocene catalytic systems capable of inducing stereospecific polymerization of propylene. In this regard, we prepared unbridged metallocene catalytic systems, [1-(E-C6H4)-3,4-Me2C5H2]2ZrCl2 (E= p-NMe2, p-OMe, p-SMe), that can produce highly isotactic polypropylene under MAO activation at atmospheric monomer pressure and liquid propylene condition. In spite of their aspecific nature, the generation of rigid rac-like cationic active species in situ by the interaction between basic sites of catalysts and acidic sites of [Me-MAO]- counter anion is considered the origin of the observed isospecificity. Details of synthesis, structures and the polymerization properties of the foregoing unbridged zirconocenes will be presented.

 

Organometallic Catalysts
7:00 PM-10:00 PM, Sunday, August 19, 2007 BCEC -- Exhibit Hall - B2, Poster

Division of Inorganic Chemistry

The 234th ACS National Meeting, Boston, MA, August 19-23, 2007