Polymerization catalyst and method

Claim 1

An olefin polymerization and copolymerization catalyst active in the presence of an alkyl aluminum cocatalyst prepared by mixing, in the presence of a solvent, reactive materials comprising particles of an inorganic oxide having active surface hydroxyl or oxide groups chosen from the group consisting of silica, alumina and silica-alumina, said particles having been fluorided with a fluorine compound and then heated at between about 50° C. and 700° C. to provide less than about 2×10 -4 g of chemically bonded fluorine per square meter of particle surface area, and a compound of the general formulas MgR 2 or (MgR 2 ) m (AlR 3 ') n where R and R' are alkyl groups and m/n is between about 0.5 and 10, inclusive, to form a reaction mixture of said solvent and a hydrocarbon insoluble first reaction product, and mixing said reaction mixture with a halide, oxyhalide or alkoxyhalide of a metal chosen from the group consisting of titanium, vanadium and zirconium to form a second reaction product.

Claim 20

The method of preparing an olefin polymerization and copolymerization catalyst active in the presence of an alkyl aluminum cocatalyst comprising the consecutive steps of: (a) fluoridating particles of silica or alumina having active surface hydroxyl or oxide groups with a fluorine compound with simultaneous or subsequent heating between 50° C. and 700° C. as required to complete the reaction and expel the by-products and provide less than about 2×10 -4 g of chemically bonded fluorine per square meter of particle surface area; (b) reacting said particles of (a) in the presence of a hydrocarbon solvent with a compound or complex of the general formula (MgR 2 ) m (AlR 3 ') n or MgR 2 wherein R and R' are alkyl groups and m/n is between about 0.5 and 10, inclusive, to form a reaction mixture of said solvent and a first reaction product insoluble in said solvent; and (c) reacting said first reaction product of (b) in said reaction mixture with a halogen-containing transition metal compound to form a second reaction product, said transition metal compound being selected from the group consisting of Tr(OR") a X 4-a and TrOX 3 , wherein Tr is a transition metal selected from the group consisting of titanium, vanadium, and zirconium, R" is an alkyl group of about 1-20 carbon atoms, X is a halogen atom, and a is zero or an integer less than 4.

Claim 21

The method of preparing an olefin polymerization and copolymerization catalyst active in the presence of an alkyl aluminum cocatalyst comprising the consecutive steps of: (a) fluoridating particles of silica or alumina having active surface hydroxyl or oxide groups with a fluorine compound with simultaneous or subsequent heating between 50° C. and 700° C. as required to complete the reaction and expel the by-products and provide less than about 2×10 -4 g of chemically bonded fluorine per square meter of particle surface area; (b) reacting said particles of (a) in the presence of a hydrocarbon solvent with a compound or complex of the general formula (MgR 2 ) m (AlR 3 ') n or MgR 2 wherein R and R' are alkyl groups and m/n is between about 0.5 and 10, inclusive, to form a reaction mixture of said solvent and a first reaction product insoluble in said solvent; and (c) reacting said first reaction product of (b) in said reaction mixture with a halogen-containing transition metal compound to form a second reaction product, said transition metal compound being selected from the group consisting of Tr(OR") a X 4-a and TrOX 3 , wherein Tr is a transition metal selected from the group consisting of titanium, vanadium, and zirconium, R" is an alkyl group of about 1-20 carbon atoms, X is a halogen atom, and a is zero or an integer less than 4.