The conventional Phillips ethylene trimerization catalyst prepared by reacting Cr(EH)3 (EH = 2-ethylhexanoate), 2,5-dimethylpyrrole (Me2C4H2NH), Et3Al, and Et2AlCl in an aromatic hydrocarbon solvent was improved to obtain a congener composed of a new chromium precursor (EH)2CrOH, (Me2C4H2N)AlEt2, and Et3Al·ClAlEt2. Reaction of CrCl3 with 3 equiv. Na(EH) in water did not generate Cr(EH)3, but unexpectedly produced (EH)2CrOH. In comparison with the erratic catalytic performance of the original Phillips system, due to the ill-defined nature of the Cr(EH)3 source (16 or 6.8 × 10(6) g per mol-Cr h depending on the source), the improved system exhibited consistently high activity (54 × 10(6) g per mol-Cr h). Reaction of (EH)2CrOH with (Me2C4H2N)AlMe2·OEt2 afforded the dimeric Cr(II)-complex (6) coordinated by (η(5)-Me2C4H2N)AlMe2(NC4H2Me2) and μ2-κ(1):η(2)-Me2C4H2N ligands. 6 provided highly active species when activated with Et3Al·ClAlEt2.

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A series of new half-sandwich titanocene [(η5-C5H5)Ti L Cl2] (1) and nonorganometallic titanium complexes [Ti L Cl3(THF)] (2) and [Ti L 2Cl2] (3) containing 5-(2-hydroxyphenyl)tetrazole ( LH) were synthesized in high yield and fully characterized by various spectroscopic methods and X-ray crystallography. In all complexes, the ligand L acted as a monoanionic bidentate ligand and hydrogen bonding between the oxygen of the tetrahydrofuran and hydrogen of the tetrazolyl unit was observed. In the cycloaddition of CO2 to propylene oxide, complex 3 showed the highest activity among the reported Ti complexes.