A comparative study of SiO2- and ZrO2-supported zirconocene/MAO catalysts on ethylene/1-olefin copolymerization

In this present study, the use of silica and zirconia as a support for zirconocene/MAO catalyst for copolymerization of ethylene/1-olefin (1-hexene, 1-octene, and 1-decene) was investigated. First, MAO as the cocatalyst was impregnated onto the support. Then, copolymerization of ethylene/1-olefin was performed. It was found that the use of zirconia support showed promising activities compared to those of the silica. Increased activities can be attributed to higher amount of [Al]MAO present on the zirconia support coupled with strong interaction between the Osupport–Alcocatalyst linkage. In addition, the use of zirconia also resulted in higher degree of 1-olefin insertion and decreased Tm of copolymers produced.