A Hydrocarbon Soluble, Molecular and "Complete" Al-Cocatalyst for High Temperature Olefin Polymerization.

The dinuclear aluminum salt {[ i Bu 2 (DMA)Al] 2 ( μ -H)} + [B(C 6 F 5 ) 4 ] - ( AlHAl ; DMA = N , N -dimethylaniline) is the prototype of a new class of molecular cocatalysts for catalytic olefin polymerization, its modular nature offering easy avenues for tailoring the activator to specific needs. We report here, as proof of concept, a first variant ( s-AlHAl ) bearing p -hexadecyl- N , N -dimethylaniline (DMA C16 ) units, which enhances solubility in aliphatic hydrocarbons. The novel s-AlHAl was used successfully as an activator/scavenger in ethylene/1-hexene copolymerization in a high-temperature solution process.