Systems and Methods for Fabricating Polymers
AssigneeUnivation Technologies, LLC
InventorsMark G. Goode, Kevin J. Cann, Ronald S. Eisinger, Barbara J. Kopp, John H. Moorhouse
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Abstract
The present invention is broadly directed to various methods and systems for gas and liquid phase polymer production. In certain embodiments, the methods are performed in conjunction with a polymerization reactor system such as gas phase reactor system or liquid phase reactor system. The invention is also broadly directed to various systems in which polymer properties are manipulated by addition of DEALE directly to a polymerization reactor system.
Claims19
A method for producing a polymer, comprising:
- injecting a chromium oxide-based catalyst into a gas phase reactor system;
- contacting a gaseous monomer with the catalyst in the reactor system for polymerizing the monomer to form a polymer;
- and
- adding an alkyl aluminum alkoxide in situ to the reactor system in an effective amount for reducing a molecular weight of the polymer to about a target molecular weight.
A method for producing a polyolefin, comprising:
- determining an initial set of operating conditions for producing a polyolefin in a fluidized bed reactor system including a temperature, a hydrogen concentration, an oxygen concentration and optionally a comonomer concentration;
- selecting a chromium oxide-based catalyst that has been reduced with diethylaluminum ethoxide (DEALE) based on a desired property of the polyolefin and the operating temperature;
- contacting a monomer with the catalyst in the fluidized bed reactor system;
- cooling a recycle stream of the fluidized bed reactor system for maintaining about the initial operating temperature;
- adding DEALE in situ to the reactor system in an effective amount for reducing a molecular weight of the polymer to about a target molecular weight;
- measuring a flow index or melt index of the polymer;
- and
- adjusting at least one condition from the initial set of operating conditions based on the measured flow index or melt index.
A polymerization reactor system, comprising:
- a reactor vessel;
- a mechanism for operatively adding a chromium oxide-based catalyst to the reactor vessel;
- a mechanism for operatively adding a monomer to the reactor vessel, the monomer contacting the catalyst in the reactor vessel and forming a polymer;
- and
- a mechanism for operatively adding an alkyl aluminum alkoxide in situ to the reactor vessel in an effective amount for reducing a molecular weight of the polymer to about a target molecular weight.
A polymer product, comprising:
- a polyolefin product of a chromium-based catalyst polymerization reaction, the polyolefin product characterized by having a flow index that does not vary by more than about 3.5 times across the particle size fractions collected on sieve screens 18, 35 and 60 from a full screen set of 10, 18, 35, 60, 120, 200 US mesh.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.