Upon activation with diethylaluminium chloride (Et 2 AlCl), a series of phenylsubstituted α-diimine nickel precatalysts conducted 4-methyl-1-pentene (4MP) and ethylene (E) (co)polymerizations via controlled chain-walking to generate branched amorphous polymers with high molecular weight and narrow molecular weight distribution (M w /M n < 1.6). The obtained poly(4MP)s were amorphous elastomers with glass transition temperature (T g ) of −10~−24°C, which are higher than that of E-4MP copolymer (−63.0°C). At room temperature (25°C), 4MP polymerization proceeds in a living manner. The microstructures of the produced poly(4MP)s indicated the 2,1-and 1,2-insertion followed by chain-walking, the latter being predominant. The NMR analyses of the polymers showed that the obtained poly(4MP) possessed methyl, isobutyl, 2,4-dimethylpentyl and 2-methylhexyl groups, while the isobutyl and 2,4-dimethylalkyl branches derived from 4MP were observed in the E-4MP copolymer. The branch structures and the insertion-type of monomer were depended on the polymerization temperature, and the content of methyl branch increased with an increase in the polymerization temperature.
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