Golf balls containing highly-neutralized acid polymer blends

• US 8,168,710 B2
• Filed: 06/01/2009
• Issued: 05/01/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Acushnet Company (FILA Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Acushnet Company (FILA Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Rajagopalan, Murali, Sullivan, Michael J., Harris, Kevin M.
• Primary Examiner(s): BUTTNER, DAVID J
• Application Number:
  US12/475,922
• Publication Number:
  US 20090247323A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,065 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 524/322
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0033 Thickness
• 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 37/0056 Hollow; Gas-filled
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0061 Coefficient of restitution
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0064 Diameter
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0065 Deflection or compression
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0075 Three piece balls, i.e. cover, intermediate layer and core
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 37/0091 Density distribution amongst the different ball layers
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 23/025 Copolymer of an unspecified olefin with a monomer other than an olefin
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2314/06 Metallocene or single site catalysts
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2666/02 Organic macromolecular compounds, natural resins, waxes or and bituminous materials

Abstract

A golf ball having a core, a cover layer, and an optional intermediate layer disposed between the core and the cover layer is disclosed and described. One or more of the core, the cover layer, or the intermediate layer is formed of a highly neutralized polymer blend of an acid copolymer and a metallocene-catalyzed copolymer, an olefinic block copolymer, a sufficient amount of a suitable cation source and a fatty acid or salt of a fatty acid. The highly neutralized polymer blend is neutralized from 80% to 100% while still retaining processability. Further, the core can have a diameter of 0.5 inches to about 1.62 inches and an Atti compression less than or equal to 105. The cover layer can have a material hardness between about 30 and 70 Shore D.

Claims

1. A golf ball comprising:

a core having a diameter of about 0.5 to 1.620 inches and an Atti compression no greater than about 105;

a cover layer having a material hardness between about 30 and 70 Shore D; and

an optional intermediate layer disposed between the core and the cover layer,

wherein one or more of the core, the cover layer, or the intermediate layer comprises a highly-neutralized polymer blend formed from a reaction product of an acid copolymer, a metallocene-catalyzed copolymer, an olefinic block copolymer, a fatty acid or salt of a fatty acid, and a sufficient amount of a suitable cation source to neutralize the total acid content in the acid copolymer to 80% to 100%.

2. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the acid copolymer is an α

-olefin, C_3-8 α

,β

-ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acid.

3. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the acid copolymer is an E/X/Y copolymer where E is ethylene, X is the C_3-8 α

,β

-ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acid, and Y is a softening comonomer.

4. The golf ball of claim 3, wherein X is acrylic acid or methacrylic acid and Y is a C_1-8 alkyl acrylate or methacrylic ester.

5. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the metallocene-catalyzed copolymer is a copolymer of ethylene and a second olefin.

6. The golf ball of claim 5, wherein the second olefin is propylene, butene, pentene, hexene, heptene, octene, or norbornene.

7. The golf ball of claim 6, wherein the metallocene-catalyzed copolymer is a grafted metallocene-catalyzed copolymer having pendant functional groups.

8. The golf ball of claim 7, wherein the pendant functional groups are selected from the group consisting of maleic, fumaric, acrylic, acrylate, and combinations thereof.

9. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the fatty acid comprises caproic acid, caprylic acid, capric acid, lauric acid, stearic acid, behenic acid, erucic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, or dimerized derivatives thereof.

10. The golf ball of claim 9, wherein the fatty acid salt comprises magnesium oleate or zinc stearate.

11. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the salt of the fatty acid comprises a cation selected from the group consisting of barium, lithium, sodium, zinc, bismuth, chromium, cobalt, copper, potassium, strontium, titanium, tungsten, magnesium, cesium, iron, nickel, silver, aluminum, tin, and calcium.

12. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein at least one of the core, the cover layer, and the intermediate layer includes the highly-neutralized polymer blend which is 100% neutralized.

13. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the highly-neutralized polymer blend is neutralized from about 90% to 100%.

14. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the core comprises a base rubber and the intermediate layer is an outer core layer comprising the highly-neutralized polymer blend.

15. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the core comprises the highly-neutralized polymer blend.

16. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the cover layer comprises a castable reactive liquid material comprising a polyurethane, a polyurea, or a copolymer comprising urethane and urea segments.

17. The golf ball of claim 1, wherein the cover layer comprises an inner cover layer and an outer cover layer.