Abstract

The homo- and copolymerization of styrene (S) with p-methylstyrene (p-MeS) and p-tert-butylstyrene (p-ButS) has been tested using initiator systems of the Ph2Zn-metallocene-MAO type. The metallocenes used were CpTiCl3, IndTiCl3, (n-BuCp)2TiCl 2, Ind2ZrCl2 and Et(Ind)2ZrCl 2. The Ph2Zn-metallocene-MAO systems homopolymerize styrene, p-methylstyrene and p-tert-butylstyrene, producing syndiotactic polymers in the case of the titanocenes and amorphous polymers in the case of the zirconocenes. The S/p-MeS and S/p-ButS copolymers obtained with the Ph2Zn-titanocene-MAO systems are enriched in the comonomer with respect to the initial feed.