GB1058912A - Vulcanizable olefin copolymers - Google Patents

Abstract

High molecular weight substantially linear amorphous unsaturated copolymers containing monomeric units of an omega-alkenyl derivative of norbornene in which the double bond of the alkenyl group is of the vinylidene type, of ethylene and of an aliphatic a - olefine R-CH=CH2 where R is an alkyl group containing 1 to 6 carbon atoms may be prepared by polymerizing the monomers in the presence of a halogen-containing catalyst obtained from a vanadium compound and an organometallic compound or hydride of aluminium or lithium-aluminium, or an organometallic compound of beryllium. Complexing agents, e.g. ethers, thioethers, tertiary amines or trisubstituted phosphines containing at least one branched alkyl group or an aromatic group, may be present. The polymerization may be carried out in bulk or solution. In the examples:-(1) 2-methallyl-norbornene-5 is copolymerized with ethylene and either propylene or butene-1 using one of the following catalyst systems-(i) vanadium oxytrichloride with aluminium ethylsesquichloride, aluminium diethyl monochloride or aluminium monoethyldichloride or (ii) vanadium tetrachloride with beryllium, diethyl or aluminium ethylsesquichloride; (2) 2-isopropenyl-norbornene-5 is copolymerized with ethylene and propylene using vanadium tetrachloride and aluminium ethyl sesquichloride and (3) 2-(31-methyl-buten-31-yl) norbornene-5 is copolymerized with ethylene and propylene using vanadium oxytrichloride and diethylaluminium monochloride. The copolymers may be vulcanized.