Phillips catalyst

The Phillips catalyst, or the Phillips supported chromium catalyst, is the catalyst used to produce approximately half of the world's polyethylene. A heterogeneous catalyst, it consists of a chromium oxide supported on silica gel.^[1] Polyethylene, the most-produced synthetic polymer, is produced industrially by the polymerization of ethylene:

n C₂H₄ → (C₂H₄)_n

Although exergonic (i.e., thermodynamically favorable), the reaction requires catalysts. Three main catalysts are employed commercially: the Phillips catalyst, Ziegler–Natta catalysts (based on titanium trichloride), and, for specialty polymers, metallocene-based catalysts.