Role of dispersion state of ti species in deactivation of MgCl2-supported Ziegler-Natta catalysts

The deactivation behaviors of TiCl3/MgCl2 model catalysts with molecularly dispersed TiCl3 were investigated to clarify the role of the dispersion state of the Ti species in the deactivation of MgCl2-supported Ziegler-Natta (ZN) catalysts for propylene and ethylene polymerization. The propylene and ethylene polymerization activities of clustered Ti species supported on MgCl2 were approximately one tenth of those of isolated Ti species, which is indicative of the significance of the aggregation of Ti species in the deactivation of ZN catalysts for olefin polymerization. Moreover, the time-course depression of monomer consumption for the clustered Ti species was slower than that for the isolated Ti species in propylene polymerization, whereas the dispersion state barely affected the depression rate in ethylene polymerization. The reduction rate of the Ti species was concluded to be important for the time-course depression of propylene consumption, whereas ethylene polymerization was insensitive to the oxidation state of the Ti species.