The propagating species for 1-hexene, propene, and ethene pol
ymerization as catal
yzed b
y [
rac-(C
2H
4(1-inden
yl)
2)Zr(CH
3)][CH
3B(C
6F
5)
3] has been intercepted at
T < -40
![](/images/entities/deg.gif)
C and characterized b
y NMR methods. Observation of the propagating species permits direct monitoring of initiation, propagation, and termination processes b
y NMR. Detailed examination of alkene incorporation into Zr-pol
ymer
yl species using
13C-labeled 1-alkenes supports a continuous insertion mechanism whereb
y the anion re-coordinates after each alkene insertion.