Polyolefin copolymers containing p-methylstyrene units prepared by metallocene and Ziegler-Natta catalysts and the transformation to maleic anhydride modified polymers

Maleic anhydride (MA) modified polyolefins are usually prepared by chemical modification of preformed polymer under free radical conditions. Due to the inert nature of polyolefin structure and ill-control of free radical reaction, this MA grafting reaction is accompanied with many undesirable side reactions. In general, the inherent complexity of MA-modified polymers has limited the understanding of their structure-property relationship. A functionalization approach focusing on the reactive polyolefin intermediates, involving p-methylstyrene and borane comonomers, has been developed to shed light on this topic. The reactive comonomers can be incorporated into polyolefins and transformed to desirable functional groups under mild reaction conditions.