Methods for polyolefin polymerization with high activity catalyst systems

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9605096-B2
Application number	US-201414296616-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 5, 2014
Priority date	Jul 25, 2013
Publication date	Mar 28, 2017
Grant date	Mar 28, 2017

Abstract

A method is provided for polymerizing an olefin monomer in a reactor with a highly active polyolefin polymerization catalyst system. The method includes introducing a catalyst system comprising a catalyst and a catalyst activator into the reactor containing the olefin monomer with less than 10 seconds or no pre-contacting time of the catalyst and the catalyst activator prior to introducing the catalyst and the catalyst activator into the reactor. The catalyst system may have a standard adjusted catalyst activity of greater than 10 gPgcat −1 hr −1 .

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for polymerizing an olefin monomer in a reactor with a highly active polyolefin polymerization catalyst system comprising:
introducing a catalyst system comprising a catalyst and a catalyst activator into the reactor containing the olefin monomer with less than 10 seconds or no pre-contacting time of the catalyst and the catalyst activator prior to introducing the catalyst and the catalyst activator into the reactor, wherein the catalyst is injected into a first monomer-containing stream and the catalyst activator is injected into a second monomer-containing stream;
wherein the catalyst system has a standard adjusted catalyst activity of greater than 10 gPgcat −1 hr −1 .

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising producing a polyolefin polymer.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reactor is a pre-polymerization reactor.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reactor is a slurry loop reactor.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the olefin monomer is propylene.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reactor further contains a second monomer.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the second monomer is ethylene or a C 4 -C 10 olefin.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the activator is a metal alkyl activator.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the metal alkyl activator is triethylaluminum.

10. The method of claim 1 , further comprising introducing an external donor system into a reactor, wherein the external donor influences the stereoregularity of a resulting polymer.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the catalyst is pre-contacted with the external donor system.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the catalyst and the external donor system are pre-contacted for less than 10 seconds.

13. The method of claim 10 , wherein the activator and external donor system are mixed before brought into contact with the catalyst.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the catalyst and the catalyst activator are separately introduced into a catalyst feed conduit upstream of an injector feeding the catalyst and the catalyst activator into the reactor.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the catalyst and the catalyst activator are separately introduced into the reactor.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the catalyst system has a standard adjusted catalyst activity of greater than 40 gPgcat −1 hr −1 .

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the catalyst system has a standard adjusted catalyst activity of greater than 70 gPgcat −1 hr −1 .

18. The method of claim 1 , wherein the catalyst has an aromatic internal donor.

19. The method of claim 18 , wherein the aromatic internal donor is a phthalate.

20. The method of claim 18 , wherein the non-aromatic internal electron donor comprises a C 1 -C 20 diester of a substituted or unsubstituted C 2 -C 10 dicarboxylic acid.

21. The method of claim 20 , wherein the non-aromatic internal electron donor is a succinate according to the formula:

wherein R 1 and R 2 are independently C 1 -C 20 linear or branched alkyl, alkenyl, or cycloalkyl hydrocarbyl radicals; and
R 3 to R 6 are, independently, hydrogen, halogen, or C 1 -C 20 linear or branched alkyl, alkenyl, or cycloalkyl hydrocarbyl radicals, wherein the R 3 to R 6 radicals are not joined together, or wherein at least two of the R 3 to R 6 radicals are joined to form a cyclic divalent radical, or a combination thereof.

Assignees

• Exxonmobil Chemical Patents Inc

Inventors

• Edwards Todd S
• Lawson Kevin W

Classifications

• C08F2/00 Primary

  Processes of polymerisation · CPC title

• C08F2500/04

  Broad molecular weight distribution, i.e. Mw/Mn > 6 · CPC title

• C08F210/06 Primary

  Propene · CPC title

• C08F2500/12

  Melt flow index or melt flow ratio · CPC title

• C08F10/00

  Homopolymers and copolymers of unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbons having only one carbon-to-carbon double bond · CPC title