Golf ball compositions comprising dynamically vulcanized blends of highly neutralized polymers and diene rubber

• US 7,148,279 B2
• Filed: 06/30/2004
• Issued: 12/12/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Acushnet Company (FILA Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Acushnet Company (FILA Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Sullivan, Michael J., Rajagopalan, Murali, Ladd, Derek A., Voorheis, Peter R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Buttner, David J.
• Application Number:
  US10/882,130
• Publication Number:
  US 20040242802A1
• Time in Patent Office: 895 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 524/394
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0003 Golf balls
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0043 Hardness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0045 Thickness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0047 Density; Specific gravity
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0062 Hardness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0064 Diameter
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0093 Moisture vapour transmission rate [MVTR]
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/06 Elastic cores

Abstract

A golf ball a core and a cover, wherein at least one of the core or the cover includes a blend of a highly neutralized ionomer formed from a reaction between an ionomer having acid groups, a suitable cation source, and a salt of an organic acid, the cation source being present in an amount sufficient to neutralized the acid by 80% or greater; and a crosslinked or vulcanized diene rubber.

Claims

1. A golf ball a core and a cover, wherein at least one of the core or the cover comprises a blend of:

a highly neutralized jonomer formed from a reaction between an jonomer having acid groups, a suitable cation source, and a salt of an organic acid, the cation source being present in an amount sufficient to neutralized the acid by 80% or greater; and

a crosslinked or vulcanized diene rubber blend comprising;

a first polybutadiene formed with a cobalt or nickel catalyst having a first Mooney viscosity between 40 to 150; and

a second polybutadiene formed with a lanthanide series catalyst having a second Mooney viscosity between 30 to 100,

wherein the first Mooney viscosity is greater than the second Mooney viscosity, and wherein the blend has a greater weight percentage of the first polybutadiene than that of the second polybutadiene.

2. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the highly neutralized ionomer and the diene rubber form a dynamically vulcanized alloy.

3. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the highly neutralized ionomer and the diene rubber form an interpenetrating polymer network.

4. The golf ball of claim 3, wherein at least one of the highly neutralized ionomer or diene rubber is in a continuous phase in the interpenetrating polymer network.

5. The golf ball of claim 3, wherein the highly neutralized ionomer and the diene rubber are in co-continuous phases in the interpenetrating polymer network.

6. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the core or the cover further comprises ionomeric copolymers, ionomeric terpolymers, ionomer precursors, thermoplastics, thermoplastic elastomers, grafted metallocene-catalyzed polymers, non-grafted metallocene-catalyzed polymers, single-site polymers, high-crystalline acid polymers and ionomers thereof, or cationic ionomers.

7. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the organic acid is selected from the group consisting of aliphatic organic acids, aromatic organic acids, saturated mono-, di or multi-functional organic acids, unsaturated mono-, di- or multi-functional organic acids, and multi-unsaturated mono-functional organic acids.

8. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the cation source comprises barium, lithium, sodium, zinc, bismuth, chromium, cobalt, copper, potassium, strontium, titanium, tungsten, magnesium, cesium, iron, nickel, silver, aluminum, tin, or calcium.

9. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the highly neutralized ionomer is neutralized by 90% or greater.

10. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the highly neutralized jonomer is neutralized 100%.

11. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the sulfur-cured diene rubber is a product of treating a diene rubber with a vulcanizing agent comprising sulfur;

insoluble sulfur;

4-morpholinyl-2-benzothiazole disulfide;

dipentamethylenethiuram hexasulfide;

thiuram disulfides;

N-oxydiethylene 2-benzothiazole sulfonamide;

N,N-diorthotolyguanidine;

bismuth dimethyldithiocarbamate;

N-cyclohexyl 2-benzothiazole sulfonamide;

or N,N-diphenylguanidine.

12. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the peroxide-cured diene rubber is a product of treating a diene rubber with an initiating agent comprising dicumyl peroxide;

2,5-dimethyl-2,5-di(t-butylperoxy) hexane;

2,5-dimethyl-2,5-di(t-butylperoxy) hexyne;

2,5-dimethyl-2,5-di(benzoylperoxy) hexane;

2,2′

-bis(t-butylperoxy)-di-iso-propylbenzene;

1,1-bis (t-butylperoxy)-3,3,5-trimethyl cyclohexane;

n-butyl 4,4-bis(t-butyl-peroxy) valerate;

t-butyl perbenzoate;

benzoyl peroxide;

n-butyl 4,4′

-bis(butylperoxy) valerate;

di-t-butyl peroxide;

or 2,5-di-(t-butylperoxy)-2,5 dimethyl hexane.

13. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the core has a diameter from 1.25 inches to 1.65 inches.

14. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the core has a hardness of 50 Shore A to 90 Shore D.

15. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the core comprises an inner core layer having a diameter of 0.25 inches to 1.6 inches and an outer core layer having a thickness of 0.1 inches or greater.

16. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the golf ball further comprises an intermediate layer having a thickness of 0.002 inches to 0.1 inches.

17. The golf ball of claim 16, wherein the intermediate layer has a thickness of 0.01 inches to 0.045 inches.

18. The golf ball of claim 16, wherein the intermediate layer is a moisture barrier layer, and wherein the moisture vapor transmission rate of the intermediate layer is less than the moisture vapor transmission rate of the cover layer.

19. The golf ball of claim 16, wherein the intermediate layer has a hardness of 30 Shore D or greater.

20. A golf ball comprising:

a core,

a cover, and

a thin dense layer disposed between the core and the cover, the thin dense layer having a specific gravity of greater than 1.2 and being located outside of a centroid radius of the ball,

wherein at least one of the core, the thin dense layer, or the cover comprises a blend of a highly neutralized ionomer formed from a reaction between an ionomer having acid groups, a suitable cation source, and a salt of an organic acid, the cation source being present in an amount sufficient to neutralized the acid by 80% or greater; and

a diene rubber blend comprising;

a first polybutadiene formed with a cobalt or nickel catalyst having a first Mooney viscosity between 40 to 150; and

a second polybutadiene formed with a lanthanide series catalyst having a second Mooney viscosity between 30 to 100,

wherein the first Mooney viscosity is greater than the second Mooney viscosity, and wherein the blend has a greater weight percentage of the first polybutadiene than that of the second polybutadiene.

21. The golf ball of claim 20, wherein the highly neutralized ionomer is neutralized by at least 90%.

22. The golf ball of claim 20, wherein the highly neutralized ionomer is neutralized 100%.

23. The golf ball of claim 20, wherein the sulfur-cured diene rubber is a product of treating a diene rubber with a vulcanizing agent comprising sulfur;

insoluble sulfur;

4-morpholinyl-2-benzothiazole disulfide;

dipentamethylenethiuram hexasulfide;

thiuram disulfides;

N-oxydiethylene 2-benzothiazole sulfonamide;

N,N-diorthotolyguanidine;

bismuth dimethyldithiocarbamate;

N-cyclohexyl 2-benzothiazole sulfonamide;

or N,N-diphenylguanidine.

24. The golf ball of claim 20, wherein the peroxide-cured diene rubber is a product of treating a diene rubber with an initiating agent comprising dicumyl peroxide;

2,5-dimethyl-2,5-di(t-butylperoxy) hexane;

2,5-dimethyl-2,5-di(t-butylperoxy) hexyne;

2,5-dimethyl-2,5-di(benzoylperoxy) hexane;

2,2′

-bis(t-butylperoxy)-di-iso-propylbenzene;

1,1-bis(t-butylperoxy)-3,3,5-trimethyl cyclohexane;

n-butyl 4,4-bis(t-butyl-peroxy) valerate;

t-butyl perbenzoate;

benzoyl peroxide;

n-butyl 4,4′

-bis(butylperoxy) valerate;

di-t-butyl peroxide;

or 2,5-di-(t-butylperoxy)- 2,5 dimethyl hexane.

25. The golf ball of claim 20, wherein the highly neutralized ionomer and the diene rubber form a dynamically vulcanized alloy.

26. The golf ball of claim 20, wherein the highly neutralized ionomer and the diene rubber form an interpenetrating polymer network.

27. A one-piece golf ball comprising a blend of:

a highly neutralized ionomer formed from a reaction between an ionomer having acid groups, a suitable cation source, and a salt of an organic acid, the cation source being present in an amount sufficient to neutralized the acid by 80% or greater; and

a crosslinked or vulcanized diene rubber.