Catalyst – solid sorbent – or support therefor: product or process – Catalyst or precursor therefor – Organic compound containing
Reexamination Certificate
2001-07-12
2003-09-30
McKane, Joseph K. (Department: 1626)
Catalyst, solid sorbent, or support therefor: product or process
Catalyst or precursor therefor
Organic compound containing
C502S164000, C502S202000, C502S414000, C526S134000, C548S101000, C548S110000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06627573
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The present invention relates to compounds that are useful as catalyst components. More particularly the present invention relates to such compounds that are particularly adapted for use in the coordination polymerization of unsaturated compounds comprising an anion containing at least two Lewis basic sites which are coordinated to Lewis acids, and further containing a hydroxyl group or a polar group containing a quiescent reactive functionality. Such compounds are particularly advantageous for use in forming supported polymerization catalysts wherein at least the catalyst activator is chemically attached to a substrate material.
It is previously known in the art to activate Ziegler-Natta polymerization catalysts, particularly such catalysts comprising Group 3-10 metal complexes containing delocalized &pgr;-bonded ligand groups, by the use of Bronsted acid salts capable of transferring a proton to form a cationic derivative or other catalytically active derivative of such Group 3-10 metal complex. Preferred Bronsted acid salts are such compounds containing a cation/anion pair that is capable of rendering the Group 3-10 metal complex catalytically active. Suitable activators comprise fluorinated arylborate anions, such as tetrakis(pentafluorophenyl)borate. Additional suitable anions include sterically shielded diboron anions of the formula:
wherein:
S is hydrogen, alkyl, fluoroalkyl, aryl, or fluoroaryl, Ar
F
is fluoroaryl, and X
1
is either hydrogen or halide, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,447,895. Additional examples include carborane compounds such as are disclosed and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,407,884.
Examples of preferred charge separated (cation/ anion pair) activators are ammonium, sulfonium, or phosphonium salts capable of transferring a hydrogen ion, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,198,401, U.S. Pat. No. 5,132,380, U.S. Pat. No. 5,470,927 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,153,157, as well as oxidizing salts such as ferrocenium, silver or lead salts, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,189,192 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,321,106 and strongly Lewis acidic salts such as carbonium or silylium salts, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,350,723 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,625,087.
Further suitable activators for the above metal complexes include strong Lewis acids including tris(perfluorophenyl)borane and tris(perfluorobiphenyl)borane. The former composition has been previously disclosed for the above stated end use in EP-A-520,732, whereas the latter composition is similarly disclosed by Marks, et al., in
J. Am. Chem. Soc.,
118, 12451-12452 (1996).
Despite the satisfactory performance of the foregoing catalyst activators under a variety of polymerization conditions, there is still a need for improved cocatalysts for use in the activation of various metal complexes especially under a variety of reaction conditions. Accordingly, it would be desirable if there were provided compounds that could be employed in solution, slurry, gas phase or high pressure polymerizations and under homogeneous or heterogeneous process conditions having improved activation properties. In particular, it would be desirable to provide compounds that may be chemically bonded to support materials to prepare supported catalyst components having improved resistance to solvent removal and loss from the particle surface.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention there are now provided compounds useful as catalyst activators corresponding to the formula:
(A*
+a
)
b
(Z*J*
j
)
−c
d
,
wherein:
A* is a cation of from 1 to 80, preferably 1 to 60 atoms, not counting hydrogen atoms, said A* having a charge +a,
Z* is an anion group of from 1 to 50, preferably 1 to 30 atoms, not counting hydrogen atoms, further containing two or more Lewis base sites;
J* independently each occurrence is a Lewis acid of from 1 to 80, preferably 1 to 60 atoms, not counting hydrogen atoms, coordinated to at least one Lewis base site of Z*, and optionally two or more such J* groups may be joined together in a moiety having multiple Lewis acidic functionality,
j is a number from 2 to 12 and
a, b, c, and d are integers from 1 to 3, with the proviso that a×b is equal to c×d, and provided further that one or more of A*, Z* or J* comprises a hydroxyl group or a polar group containing quiescent reactive functionality.
The foregoing compounds, in particular, those containing quiescent reactive functionality may be utilized in combination with one or more Group 3-10 or Lanthanide metal complexes to form catalyst compositions for polymerization of addition polymerizable monomers, especially ethylenically unsaturated monomers, most preferably, C
2-20,000
&agr;-olefins. Additionally, the compounds may be utilized to form latent activators, that is, compounds that may themselves not cause a metal complex to become catalytically active, but which may be converted to such a compound, by, for example, in-situ reaction of the hydroxyl group or quiescent reactive functionality or its derivative with a Lewis acid, especially an aluminum hydrocarbyl compound, or an alkali metal halide or ammonium halide salt. Moreover, the compounds may be deposited onto solid supports, such as by impregnation, surface deposition, physisorption or chemical reaction with the support, reactive functionality of the support, or chemical modifiers associated with the support, to form heterogeneous catalyst components for use in preparing heterogeneous catalyst compositions for use in polymerization of the foregoing monomers.
In one embodiment of the invention, the foregoing compounds are used to form supported catalyst components by reaction of the hydroxyl group thereof with reactive functionality of a support material, or by conversion of the quiescent reactive functionality to a reactive functionality and reaction thereof with reactive functionality of a support material. The resulting supported catalyst components are highly resistant to loss of activator compound in a liquid reaction medium such as occurs in a slurry polymerization. One or more Group 3-10 or Lanthanide metal complexes, preferably a Group 4 metal complex, and additional additives, modifiers and adjuvants may be added to the catalyst component, either before, after or simultaneous with addition of the cocatalyst of the present invention, to form the fully formulated catalyst composition.
Additionally according to the present invention there is provided a catalyst composition for polymerization of an ethylenically unsaturated, polymerizable monomer comprising, in combination, the above described activated derivative compound, a Group 3-10 metal complex that is capable of activation to form an addition polymerization catalyst, or the reaction product of such combination, and optionally a support.
Additionally according to the present invention there is provided a process for polymerization of one or more ethylenically unsaturated, polymerizable monomers comprising contacting the same, optionally in the presence of an inert aliphatic, alicyclic or aromatic hydrocarbon, with the above catalyst composition or supported catalyst composition.
The foregoing compounds are uniquely adapted for use in activation of a variety of metal complexes, especially Group 4 metal complexes, under standard and atypical olefin polymerization conditions. Because of this fact, the foregoing compounds are capable of forming highly desirable olefin polymers in high efficiency.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
All references herein to elements belonging to a certain Group refer to the Periodic Table of the Elements published and copyrighted by CRC Press, Inc., 1995. Also any reference to the Group or Groups shall be to the Group or Groups as reflected in this Periodic Table of the Elements using the IUPAC system for numbering groups. When referred to herein, the teachings of any patent, patent application or publication are hereby incorporated by reference herein.
The catalyst activators of the invention are further characterized in the following manner. A*
+a
is desirably chosen to provide ove
Babb David A.
Campbell, Jr. Richard E.
Carnahan Edmund M.
Jacobsen Grant B.
Neithamer David R.
McKane Joseph K.
Saeed Kamal
The Dow Chemical Company
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