The synthesis and the use of a neodymium based binary catalytic system for the polymerization of dienes, vinyl, and polar vinyl monomers is reported. The reported catalyst was composed of neodymium trichloride (NdCl3) and triethylphosphate (TEP) as the ligand. NdCl3 6H2O and TEP (molar ratio 1:3) were dissolved in a toluene-ethanol mixture and an azeotropic distillation was performed to remove the crystallization water of NdCl3 and to allow the complexation of the Nd with the phosphate ligands. The characterization of the catalyst was performed by FT-IR, 1H and 31P NMR analysis. The synthesized catalyst (NdCl3 3TEP) was used with triisobutlyaluminum (TIBA) co-catalyst in appropriate ratios with varying temperatures for the polymerization of diene and vinyl monomers. The quantity of TIBA determined the 1,4-cis content due to the stable aluminum active center that favors the transformation from “anti” allylic units to “syn” allylic units. Homopolymerization of myrcene, isoprene, vinyl acetate, methyl acrylate, methyl methacrylate, and styrene was carried out. The copolymerization between dienes and diene and vinyl monomers was also carried out. Size exclusion chromatography (SEC) was used to determine molecular weight (Mn), and the polydispersity index (PDI) of the polymers. 1HNMR was used to determine the conversion and the microstructure of the synthesized polydienes. The living nature of the neodymium catalyzed polymerization of dienes was demonstrated by sequential monomer addition and by synthesizing block copolymers.

NdCl3 3TEP-TIBA catalyst system for coordination polymerization of diene and vinyl monomers

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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