Patent ID: 8450427

Claim:
A method of polymerizing an alkene monomer to produce a polymer, the method comprising contacting said monomer with: a catalyst that is Cu(0), Cu 2 Te, CuSe, Cu 2 S, Cu 2 O, or a combination thereof; an initiator that is one or more of sulfonyl halides, nitrogen halides or compounds of the formula R—X, R′C(═O)OR″, or R′—CN, where X is a halogen—and R is C 1 -C 6 alky, R′ is a halogen-substituted C 1 -C 6 alkyl, and R″ is a C 1 -C 6 alkyl; and a component comprising a solvent and optional nitrogen-containing ligand, where the combination of the component and monomer is capable of diproportionating Cu(I)X into Cu(0) and Cu(II)X 2 where X is Cl, Br, or I.