(544ad) Immobilized Group IV Metal Precursors on Acidic Supports for Ethylene Oligomerization

Shale gas is a highly abundant natural resource that the U.S. has only recently begun to utilize. While the processes that use heterogeneous acid catalysts to upgrade this ubiquitous feedstock into fuels are robust, similar systems used to produce the more value-added product, namely linear alpha olefins (LAO’s), are industrially onerous. In order to selectively dimerize or trimerize ethylene, homogeneous, group IV transition metal complexes have been reported for this catalytic chain growth reaction. However, industrially demanding cocatalysts and chain transfer agents are required to activate the metal center. In this presentation, we will discuss our recent results using immobilized group IV catalysts on various acidic supports to convert ethylene to higher molecular weight products. We will discuss how the support, metal precursor, loading, and temperature affect the selectivity and stability of the various catalysts. We are also interested in determining the nature of the active site, specifically studying the effects of the zeolite composition and topology on the zeolite’s ability to create the cationic group IV metal center that is required for C-C coupling reactions.