ja1204049

Highly Active Iron and Cobalt Catalysts for the Polymerization of Ethylene

Brooke L.Small,?Maurice Brookhart,*,?and

Alison M.A.Bennett?

Department of Chemistry,Uni V ersity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,Chapel Hill,North Carolina27599-3290

DuPont Central Research and De V elopment Experimental Station,Wilmington,Delaware19880-0328

Recei V ed January20,1998

Study of the polymerization of olefins by soluble,well-defined transition metal complexes is an ever-growing area.While most attention has been focused on early transition metal d0and lanthanide d0f n systems,1recently late metal Pd(II)-and Ni(II)-catalyst systems incorporating R-diimine ligands have been reported which convert both ethylene and R-olefins to high molar mass polymers.2Unique features of these systems include the ability to produce highly branched polymers from ethylene and to copolymerize ethylene with certain polar monomers using the Pd(II)catalysts.Most late metal systems produce low molecular weight oligomers from ethylene and particularly R-olefins.The key to high polymer production using the aryl-substituted R-di-imine systems is the incorporation on the aryl rings of bulky ortho substituents that greatly retard the rate of chain transfer.We report here the synthesis of tridentate Fe(II)and Co(II)complexes incorporating bulky substituted arylimine moieties and demon-strate that these are extremely active and long-lived catalysts for the polymerization of ethylene.

The tridentate ligands used in this study are pyridine diimine ligands of general structures1-3prepared by the Schiff-base condensation of2equiv of the desired aniline with2,6-diacetylpyridine.The precatalysts,formed by addition of the ligand to the appropriate hydrated or anhydrous metal salt

(Scheme1),are neutral Fe(II)and Co(II)complexes{[(2,6-ArN d C(Me))2C5H3N]MX2}(Ar)2,6-C6H3(i-Pr)2,1;2,6-C6H3-Me2,2;2-C6H4(t-Bu),3;M)Fe,a;Co,b;X)Cl-,Br-,NO3-). Figure1shows the X-ray crystal structure for2,6-bis[1-(2,6-diisopropylphenylimino)ethyl]pyridineiron(II)chloride(1a).3The structure for2,6-bis[1-(2-tert-butylphenylimino)ethyl]pyridinecobalt-(II)chloride(3b)is shown in the Supporting Information.4Both complexes are pentacoordinate with pseudo-square-pyramidal geometry,the most notable features being the nearly perpendicular arrangement in both complexes of the aryl rings relative to the square plane as well as the syn conformation of the tert-butyl groups in https://www.wendangku.net/doc/0219026152.html,plexes1a-b,2a-b,and3a-b are paramagnetic,high-spin species,as indicated by magnetic sus-ceptibility measurements.5Both the crystallographic data and the magnetic susceptibility measurements are consistent with the results reported for similar complexes lacking ortho substituents on the aryl rings.6

The active catalysts are generated in situ in toluene by the addition of modified methylalumoxane(MMAO,g300equiv) to the precursors in the presence of ethylene(Scheme1).Data for the polymerizations of ethylene are summarized in Table1.7 All of the catalysts reported convert ethylene to highly linear polyethylene(PE)as determined by differential scanning calo-rimetry(T m values133-139°C).8In contrast to the Ni(II)-and Pd(II)-diimine catalysts,no branching is observed,even with the bulkiest ligands at high temperatures and low ethylene pressures. However,the polymer molecular weights vary dramatically with modifications in ligand,metal,and concentration of activator.Like the Ni(II)and Pd(II)systems,increasing the steric bulk of the ortho aryl substituents increases molecular weight.For example, the tetraisopropyl-substituted Fe system(1a/MMAO,Table1, entry1)yields a polymer with a peak MW of71K,while the

?University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

?DuPont Central Research and Development.

(1)(a)Brintzinger,H.H.;Fischer, D.;Muelhaupt,R.;Rieger, B.; Waymouth,R.M.Angew.Chem.,Int.Ed.Engl.1995,34,1143.(b)Ziegler Catalysts:Recent Scientific Inno V ations and Technological Impro V ement;

Fink,G.,Muelhaupt,R.,Brintzinger,H.H.,Eds.;Springer-Verlag:Berlin, 1995.(c)Bockman,M.J.Chem.Soc.,Dalton Trans.1996,255.(d)Coates, G.W.;Waymouth,R.M.In Comprehensi V e Organometallic Chemistry II; Abel,E.W.,Stone,F.G.A.,Wilkinson,G.,Eds.;Hegedus,L.,Vol.Ed.; Pergamon Press:1995;Vol.12;pp1193-1208.(e)Yang,X.;Stern,C.L.; Marks,T.J.J.Am.Chem.Soc.1994,116,10015.(f)Crowther,D.J.; Baenzinger,N.C.;Jordan,R.F.J.Am.Chem.Soc.1991,113,1455.

(2)(a)Johnson,L.K.;Killian,C.M.;Brookhart,M.S.J.Am.Chem.Soc. 1995,117,6414.(b)Killian,C.M.;Tempel,D.J.;Johnson,L.K.;Brookhart, M.S.J.Am.Chem.Soc.1996,118,11664.

(3)Crystal data of1a:triclinic,P1h,blue;a)8.7953(6)?,b)9.8587-(6)?,c)20.9583(13)?;V)1646.45(18)?3;Z)2;R)0.060;GOF) 2.52.

(4)Crystal data of3b:triclinic,P1h,gold;a)12.7329(7)?,b)15.7633-(8)?,c)15.8220(8)?;V)3138.5(3)?3;Z)4;R)0.084;GOF)2.90.

(5)Magnetic susceptibilities(μeff,BM)were determined for the following complexes:1a,5.54;2a,5.22;3a,5.00;1b,4.55;2b,4.67;3b,4.65.See Supporting Information for experimental details.

(6)(a)Edwards,D.A.;Edwards,S.D.;Martin,W.R.;Pringle,T.J.; Thornton,P.Polyhedron1992,11,1569.(b)Goldschmied,E.;Stephenson, N.C.Acta Crystallogr.1970,B26,1867.(c)Reiff,W.M.;Erickson,N.E.; Baker,W.A.,Jr.Inorg.Chem.1969,8,2019.

(7)Nearly equivalent activities are observed when the corresponding Fe(III)complexes(prepared from ligands1-3and the corresponding FeX3 hydrates)are activated with MMAO.

(8)All methyl groups visible by13C NMR are attributable to end groups; there are less than0.4methyl branches per1000carbons.Heat of fusion data from the DSC traces indicates very high crystallinity(226J/g vs170J/g for commercial

HDPE).

Figure1.X-ray crystal structure of1a.Selected bond distances(?) and angles(deg):Fe(1)-N(1),2.222(4);Fe(1)-N(2),2.091(4);Fe(1)-N(3), 2.225(5);Fe(1)-Cl(1), 2.3173(19);Fe(1)-Cl(2), 2.2627(17); Cl(1)-Fe(1)-Cl(2),117.58(7);N(1)-Fe(1)-Cl(1),100.57(12);N(3)-Fe(1)-Cl(1),102.47(12);N(2)-Fe(1)-Cl(1),94.52(13);N(1)-Fe(1)-N(3),140.23(16);N(1)-Fe(1)-N(2),73.67(16).

Scheme1

4049

J.Am.Chem.Soc.1998,120,4049-4050

S0002-7863(98)00210-8CCC:$15.00?1998American Chemical Society

Published on Web04/14/1998

tetramethyl system(2a/MMAO,entry2)shows the peak MW at 33K.9For comparison of the cobalt analogues,see entries7and 8.Generally,the iron systems produce higher molecular weight materials relative to their cobalt analogues(entries1vs7and2 vs8),but the tert-butyl-substituted systems do not exhibit this trend(entry3vs9).

For the iron systems in particular,increasing the amount of activator leads to broadened polydispersities and bimodal behavior (Figure2).This observation is consistent with the proposal that chain transfer to aluminum is a viable route for the formation of low molecular weight materials early in the polymerization.10,11 Thus,by using large amounts of activator or short reaction times, predominantly low molecular weight polymers are made(see GPC trace c,Figure2).

In the case of the iron catalysts,the turnover frequencies(TOFs) increase with ethylene pressure as shown by the60°C runs (entries16-18)where TOFs are4.8×106/h at200psig,7.0×

106/h at400psig,and11.8×106/h at600psig,thus establishing

that the rate of chain growth is dependent on ethylene concentra-

tion.In contrast,the TOFs of the cobalt analogues at50°C show

little dependence on ethylene pressure under these conditions s3.9×105/h at200psig,4.0×105/h at400psig,and4.8×105/h at 600psig(entries13-15).The activities of the iron catalysts are

remarkably high;TOFs of greater than107/h can be achieved at

60°C and600psig C2H4(entry18)which corresponds to3.3×

105kg PE/mol Fe?h!These activities are thus comparable to the

most active Ziegler-Natta systems.12The cobalt complexes

generally exhibit activities that are an order of magnitude lower

than their iron analogues.The catalysts are stable at elevated

temperatures as demonstrated by runs19and20.In these cases

activation with an increased catalyst loading resulted in rapid

exotherms to90and130°C,respectively.These temperatures

remained constant for the duration of each run.

In summary,using the previously examined Ni(II)and Pd(II) R-diimine catalysts as a guide,we have prepared new iron(II) and cobalt(II)catalysts based on tridentate pyridine bis-imine ligands in which the imine moieties are bulky ortho-substituted aryl imines.These catalysts are robust and extremely active for polymerization of ethylene to linear,high-density polyethylene. To the best of our knowledge,these are the first reported iron-based homogeneous catalysts for ethylene polymerization.Mecha-nistic studies are in progress.

Acknowledgment is made to DuPont and the National Science Foundation for funding.

Supporting Information Available:Crystal structure data for1a and 3b,syntheses of ligands and complexes,magnetic susceptibility data, polymerization procedures,and polymer characterization data(selected GPC and DSC traces;13C NMR data)(30pages,print/PDF).See any current masthead page for ordering information and Web access instructions.

JA9802100

(9)Bimodal behavior is sometimes observed with a low MW fraction due

to chain transfer(see text).If a distinct low MW fraction is not observed, then low molecular weight shoulders or tails are seen.Thus,the best measure of the molecular weight of the high MW fraction is the peak MW.See Supporting Information for sample gpc traces.

(10)As an alternative explanation for bimodal behavior,a referee suggested the existence of two catalytic species whose ratios vary with changing Al:Fe ratios.However,we have shown by1H NMR that the end groups of the low M N materials are saturated,which supports chain transfer via transmetalation.

(11)(a)Marques,M.V.;Nunes,P.C.;Tait,P.J.T.;Dias,A.R.J.Polym. Sci.-A.1993,31,219.(b)Komiya,S.;Katoh,M.;Ikariya,T.;Grubbs,R.H.; Yamamoto,T.;Yamamoto,https://www.wendangku.net/doc/0219026152.html,anomet.Chem.1984,260,115.

(12)(a)Spaleck,W.;Ku¨ber,F.;Winter,A.;Rohrmann,J.;Bachmann,B.; Antberg,M.;Dolle,V.;Paulus,https://www.wendangku.net/doc/0219026152.html,anometallics1994,13,954.(b)Alt, H.G.;Milius,W.;Palackal,https://www.wendangku.net/doc/0219026152.html,anomet.Chem.1994,472,113.(c) Gianetti,E.;Nicoletti,G.M.;Mazzocchi,R.J.Polym.Sci.-A.1985,23,2117.

Table1.Results of Ethylene Polymerization by1a-b,2a-b,and3a-b in Toluene

entry catalyst a loading(μmol)pressure(psig)temp(°C)reaction length(min)yield(g)peak b MW TOF c(×10-6/h) 11a 1.1152550 3.09710000.12 22a 1.2152550 2.78330000.10 33a 1.3152550 2.88810000.10 41a0.615050 1.35190000.09 52a0.615050 1.17150000.08 63a0.715050 1.36560000.09 71b 1.4152550 1.20240000.04 82b 1.6152550 2.9914000.08 93b 1.2152550 1.001830000.04

101b0.8150500.45430000.02

112b0.9150500.5937000.03

123b 1.015050 1.36v.high d0.06

131b8.020*******.5113000.39

141b7.9400501217.597000.40

151b8.0600501221.689000.48

161a0.6200601012.826600 4.8

171a0.5400601017.3276007.0

181a0.5600601028.53110011.8

191a 1.3600901046.6174007.6

202a 4.260012510107.69000 5.5

a All of the precursor complexes were activated with MMAO.

b Entries1-6exhibit bimodal molecular weight distributions.

c Entries1-6and

19-20are likely mass transport limited.d The sample was not

soluble.

Figure2.Activator effect on molecular weight(catalyst1a/MMAO,25

°C,15min,1atm ethylene):(a)300equiv of Al,M N)20900,M W)

135000;(b)1500equiv of Al,M N)709,M W)52400;(c)4500equiv

of Al,M N)390,M W)9570.

4050J.Am.Chem.Soc.,Vol.120,No.16,1998Communications to the Editor