2-(R-1H-Benzoimidazol-2-yl)-6-(1-aryliminoethyl)pyridyliron(II) dichlorides: Synthesis, characterization and the ethylene oligomerization behavior

Iron(II) dichloride complexes bearing 2-(methyl-substituted 1H-benzoimidazol-2-yl)-6-(1-aryliminoethyl)pyridines (Fe1–Fe6) or 2-(chloro-substituted 1H-benzoimidazol-2-yl)-6-(1-aryliminoethyl)pyridines (Fe7–Fe12) were synthesized and characterized by FT-IR and elemental analysis. Single crystal X-ray crystallographic analyses revealed that complexes Fe2 and Fe3 possessed a distorted square-pyramidal geometry at iron. Upon activation with either MAO or MMAO, all iron pro-catalysts showed good activities toward ethylene oligomerization with high selectivity for α-olefins and high K values. The influence of the reaction conditions and the nature of the ligands on the catalytic performance of these iron complexes were investigated.