Natta

Natta is the surname of Italian chemist Giulio Natta (1903-1979). He and Karl Ziegler developed the Ziegler-Natta polymerization catalysts, enabling the stereospecific polymerization of alpha-olefins such as propylene to isotactic polypropylene.

They used catalysts based on titanium chloride compounds together with organoaluminum cocatalysts, enabling control over tacticity and molecular weight. The work, begun in the 1950s at Italian and German laboratories, transformed plastics production and earned Natta and Ziegler the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1963.

The catalysts produced polyolefins with high strengths and clarity and widely used in packaging, automotive components. The Ziegler-Natta catalysts can be heterogeneous (supported on MgCl2) or homogeneous; later developments included metallocene catalysts, providing even more control.

Natta is also a surname borne by other individuals beyond the chemist, and the term is primarily associated with his contributions to polymer chemistry and catalysis.