Ethylene polymerization with bis(diethylamido){di(3-methylindol-2-yl)phenylmethane}titanium (1) was examined using modified methylaluminoxane (MMAO) as an activator. The activity of the 1/MMAO catalyst system was low (16.3 kg of polyethylene (PE)/mol of Ti•h), but pretreatment of 1 with ClSiMe3 followed by activation with MMAO improved the activity up to 154 kg of PE/mol of Ti•h. The obtained PEs are all monomodal by size exclusion chromatography and have linear structures by NMR spectroscopy. The 1/ClSiMe3/MMAO catalyst system was also active for ethylene/1-octene copolymerization (90 kg of copolymer/mol of Ti•h).
- Shun Ohta
- Yuki Kasai
- Masaaki Okazaki