Elastomeric polymer blends and processes for their production

Abstract

Elastomeric polymer blends and processes for their production are described. Specifically, the polymer blends comprise a first polymer and a second polymer, where the first polymer comprises from about 70 wt % to about 90 wt % units derived from propylene and from about 10 wt % to about 30 wt % units derived from ethylene and/or a C-Calpha-olefin, and the second polymer comprises from about 88 wt % to about 98 wt % units derived from propylene and from about 2 wt % to about 12 wt % units derived from ethylene and/or a C-Calpha-olefin. The elastomeric polymer blends are further characterized by having two or more of the following properties: an overall propylene content of between about 75 wt % and about 90 wt %, a melting point between about 110° C. and about 145° C., a Vicat softening point greater than about 45° C., a tensile stress at 300% strain of less than about 500 psi (3447 kPa), as determined by a stress strain test according to ASTM D412, or an average maximum force for pellet separation of less than about 10 N in an accelerated storage stability test. The polymer blends are produced in a dual reactor process, in which the first polymer and the second polymer are prepared using differing catalyst systems.