Preparation of bimodal polyethylene with different branching densities by co-anchoring strategy

Abstract

Among various polyolefin products, bimodal polyethylene is widely used as an important polyolefin, which is usually composed of high molecular weight polyethylene and low molecular weight polyethylene, however, having both components with different molecular weights and branching densities often increases the complexity of the polymerization process. In this work, we used a co-anchoring strategy to achieve co-supporting of α-diimine nickel catalyst and pyridine imine nickel catalyst, prepared bimodal (polar) polyethylene with different molecular weights and branching densities using only ethylene as a single feedstock. This bimodal polyethylene exhibited excellent mechanical properties, rheological properties and barrier properties. This strategy is expected to provide a new approach for preparing high-performance polyolefins with multiple microstructures.