Preparation of inorganic MgCl2-alcohol adduct and its application in organometallic HYBRID catalysts for ethylene polymerization

Inorganic support, MgCl2-alcohol adduct, for use in the impregnation of organometallic catalysts, was prepared by the recrystallization method using alcohol. Since MgCl2-alcohol adduct has two functional groups in the molecule, i.e., hydroxyl (-OH) and chlorine (-Cl) groups, it is suitable for the impregnation of both metallocene and Ziegler-Natta hybrid catalysts. The hybrid catalysts were prepared in order to control the molecular weight (Mw) and the molecular weight distribution (MWD) in ethylene polymerization. The polyethylene produced by the Ziegler-Natta/Metallocene hybrid catalysts showed two melting temperatures and a bimodal MWD, corresponding to products arising from each of the individual catalysts. This suggests that these hybrid catalysts acted as individual active species and produced a blend of polymers.