Advance on nickel‐ and palladium‐catalyzed insertion copolymerization of ethylene and acrylate monomers

Abstract Nickel‐ and palladium‐catalyzed insertion copolymerization of ethylene and acrylate comonomers for synthesis of ethylene‐acrylates copolymers have attracted much academic and industrial interests and remained highly challenging. This review provides an overview of the developments in nickel‐ and palladium‐catalyzed insertion copolymerization of ethylene and acrylate comonomers. Mechanistic interpretation of metal‐catalyzed insertion copolymerization of ethylene and acrylate comonomers is described. Late transition metal catalysts are divided to nickel‐based and palladium‐based catalysts with different chelate ligands. The effects of catalyst structure on copolymerization performance and copolymer microstructure are comprehensively discussed. This review aims to promote the design and development of nickel and palladium catalysts for ethylene/acrylate copolymerizations and synthesis of ethylene‐acrylates copolymers.