INTRODUCTION Polystyrene can be obtained in atactic (aPS), isotactic (iPS) or syndiotactic (sPS) form by a variety of catalytic systems1,2 and initiators. For instance, it is known that (pentamethylcyclopentadienyl)titanium derivatives activated by methylaluminoxane (MAO) afford a highly sPS, with %m (defined as meso diads content, calculated by 13C-nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)) below the i...

The use of p,α-dimethylstyrene, potentially obtainable from renewable sources, as a substitute for styrene in the synthesis amphiphilic copolymers is reported this work. A series novel poly(p,α-dimethylstyrene-co-maleic anhydride) (SMA) was synthesized, characterized, and studied potential polymeric surfactants. After hydrolysis, solution properties were compared to similar very well-known styr...

This mini-review focuses on recent advances on the synthesis, structure, and characterization of allyl-based rare earth organometallic complexes, with emphasis on their ability to catalyze the polymerization of non-polar monomers such as conjugated dienes, styrene, and their related copolymerization.

Cyclopentalljphenanthrene titanium trichloride and its 2-methyl and phenyl derivatives were synthesized; the crystal structure of the 2-mcthyl-substituted complex was determined by X-ray diffraction analysis. In the presence of methylalumoxane (MAO), these complexes give highly active catalysts for the syndiotactic polymerization of styrene; the 2-phenyl-substituted complex exceeds all previous...