Preparation of polymer-supported zirconocene catalysts and olefin polymerization

A novel polymer-supported metallocene catalyst with crosslinked poly(styren e-co-acrylamide) (PSAm) as the support has been prepared and characterized. The probability of long sequences of acrylamide (Am) in PSAm is still low even at an Am amount of 32.8 mol %, implying the relatively homogeneous dis tribution of Am. The infrared spectra of PSAm and the supported catalyst su bstantiate that an amide group in PSAm coordinates with methylaluminoxane t hrough both oxygen and nitrogen atoms. Ethylene/alpha-octene copolymerizati on showed that the catalytic activity is not markedly affected by adding al pha-octene. C-13 NMR analysis of the ethylene/alpha-octene copolymer indica ted that the composition distribution of the copolymer is uniform. (C) 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.