Three coordinate aluminum catalyst activator composition

A process for making a metal complex corresponding to the formula:

• AlArfQ1Q2, or a dimer, adduct, or mixture thereof;
• where:
• Arf is a fluorinated aromatic hydrocarbyl moiety of from 6 to 30 carbon atoms;
• Q1 is Ar or a C1-20 hydrocarbyl group, optionally substituted with one or more cyclohydrocarbyl, hydrocarbyloxy, hydrocarbylsiloxy, hydrocarbylsilylamino, hydrocarbylsilyl, silylhydrocarbyl, di(hydrocarbylsilyl)amino, hydrocarbylamino, di(hydrocarbyl)amino, di(hydrocarbyl)phosphino, or hydrocarbylsulfido groups having from 1 to 20 atoms other than hydrogen, or, further optionally, such substituents may be covalently linked with each other to form one or more fused rings or ring systems;
• and
• Q2 is an aryloxy, arylsulfide or di(hydrocarbyl)amido group, optionally substituted with one or more hydrocarbyl, cyclohydrocarbyl, hydrocarbyloxy, hydrocarbylsiloxy, hydrocarbylsilylamino, hydrocarbylsilyl, silylhydrocarbyl, di(hydrocarbylsilyl)amino, hydrocarbylamino, di(hydrocarbyl)amino, di(hydrocarbyl)phosphino, or hydrocarbylsulfido groups having from 1 to 20 atoms other than hydrogen, or, further optionally such substituents may be covalently linked with each other to form one or more fused rings or ring systems, said Q2 having from 3 to 20 atoms other than hydrogen comprising contacting under ligand exchange reaction conditions a trifluoroarylaluminum or trifluoroarylboron compound of the formula Arf3Me1,
• wherein Arf is as previously defined, and
• Me1 is aluminum or boron,
• with a Group 13 organometallic compound of the formula:
• Q32Me2Q2, wherein
• Q2 are as previously defined;
• Q3 is independently each occurrence C1 alkyl;
• and
• Me2 is a Group 13 metal, with the proviso that if Me1 is boron, then Me2 is aluminum.