Alternative Resting States of Olefin-Polymersization Catalysts - Detection of Relevant Reaction Channels by UV/vis, EPR- and NMR-Spectroscopic Methods

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Stefan Mecking
• Subject Area: Preparatory and Physical Chemistry of Polymers
• Term: from 2009 to 2014
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 135024452

Key for the preparation of new polyolefin materials is tailoring of their microstructure – and thus of polymer properties – via the catalyst. Novel catalysts provide access e.g. to block copolymers. An issue which is rather poorly understood for individual systems, however, is the nature of the different metal species actually present under realistic reaction conditions, i.e. in the presence of large amounts of monomer. The project aims at in-situ identification and quantification of species distribution, e.g. of resting states, in selected metalloceneand post-metallocene-based olefin-polymerization catalysts by adapting existing spectroscopic methods – mainly UV/vis, EPR and NMR techniques – toward this goal. Prof. Mecking contributes expertise for a novel living and stable post-metallocene polymerization catalyst particularly suited for such studies. Prof. Brintzinger brings to this project his experience in metallocene reaction chemistry, and Prof. Möller will contribute to its methodological side. Cooperation of our Russian partners at the Boreskov Institute of Catalysis with the group of Prof. Brintzinger, which has led to a series of joint publications during the last years, is to be further developed and applied to post-metallocene systems.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Russia
• Participating Persons: Professor Dr. Hans-Herbert Brintzinger (†); Professor Dr. Heiko Möller; Professor Dr. Evgenii Pavlovich Talsi