Study of Hydrocarbon‐Soluble Organometallic Catalysts. III. Investigations on the Activity and Electric Conductivity of Al(C2H5)3—M(C5H7O2)n Catalysts Employed in the Synthesis of Stereoregular Polyacetylene

The aim of the present work is to establish some correlations between the catalytic activity of several organometallic hydrocarbon‐soluble complex systems and the electric conductivity, as a method which expresses the ionization degree of these catalyst types. The following systems were studied: Al(C2H5)3—VO(C5H7O2)2; Al(C2H5)3—Cr(C5H7O2)3, Al(C2H5)3—Co(C5H7O2)3. The catalytic activity was determined at various molar ratios of AlEt3/M(C5H7O2)n in the stereoregular polymerization reaction of acetylene, where M is a metal. The visible and ultraviolet absorption spectra of the catalysts, as well as the variation of extinctions at various AlEt3/M(C5H7O2)n molar ratios were also determined. The systems with an optimal catalytic activity also show maximum values of electric conductivity and extinctions. The composition, degree of ionization of the catalyst, and the way in which this influences the catalytic activity are also discussed.