Manufacture of polyethylene of controlled molecular weight

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS OF POLYMERIZATING ETHYLENE TO LINEAR HOMOPOLYMERS HAVING A DENSITY WITHIN THE RANGE OF 0.95 TO 0.98 IN THE PRESENCE OF AN INERT LIQUID HYDROCARBON MEDIUM AT TEMPERATURES OF 20 TO 100*C. WITH AN INITIATOR SYSTEM COMPRISING A TITANIUM HALIDE AND A LITHIUM ALUMINUM ALKYL, THE STEPS WHICH COMPRISE CHARGING A QUANTITY OF INITIATOR BEING LESS THAN 5 WEIGHT PERCENT OF THE ETHYLENE CHARGED, SAID INITITAOR CONTAINING TITANIUM TO LITHIUM ALUMINUM ALKYL IN AN EQUILAVENT WEIGHT RATIO OF 2 TO 4.5, CONTINUING THE POLYMERIZATION UNTIL THE CATALYST LOSES ACTIVITY, AND THEREAFTER SEPARATING FROM THE POLYMERIZATION MIXTURE AN ETHYLENE HOMOPOLYMER, SAID HOMOPOLYMER HAVING A MELT INDEX AS DERERMINED BY ASTM-D-1238-52-T OF 0.00 WHEN SAID RATIO IS 2 BY A MELT INDEX OF 1.0 WHEN SAID RATIO IS 4.5,THE MELT INDEX AND SAID RATIO BEING INTERDEPENDENT.