Study on Hydrogen Sensitivity of Ziegler–Natta Catalysts with Novel Cycloalkoxy Silane Compounds as External Electron Donor

Two novel cycloalkoxy silane compounds (ED1 and ED2) were synthesized and used as the external electron donors (EEDs) in Ziegler–Natta catalysts with diethyl 2,3-diisopropylsuccinate as internal electron donor. The results indicated that the Ziegler–Natta catalysts using ED1 and ED2 as EEDs had high catalytic activities and good stereoselectivities. The melt flow rate (MFR) and gel permeation chromatography (GPC) results revealed that the obtained polypropylene has higher MFR and lower average molecular weights than the commercial EED cyclohexyl methyl dimethoxysilane. The differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) results indicated that new isospecific active centers formed after the introduction of new external donors. The work implied that the novel EEDs could improve the hydrogen sensitivities of the catalyst system and obtain polymers with high melt flow rate.