Highly-neutralized ethylene copolymers and their use in golf balls
AssigneeE. I. Du Pont de Nemours and Company
InventorsRobert Joseph Statz, John Chu Chen
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Thermoplastics with high resilience (high coefficient of restitution) and softness (low Atti compressions) and their use in golf ball components. Melt-processible, highly-neutralized ethylene acid copolymers and process for making them by incorporating an aliphatic, mono-functional organic acid in the acid copolymer and then neutralizing greater than 90% of all the acid groups present.
Claims22
A composition comprising a thermoplastic polymer that is melt-processible which, when formed into a sphere that is 1.50 to 1.54 inches in diameter, has a COR (coefficient of restitution) of at least 0.785 measured by firing the sphere at an initial velocity of 125 feet/second against a steel plate positioned 3 feet from the point where initial velocity is determined and dividing the velocity of rebound from the plate by the initial velocity and an Atti compression of no more than 100 and
- wherein the thermoplastic polymer consists essentially of at least one of (a) E/X/Y copolymers where E is ethylene, X is a C3 to C8 α,β ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acid, and Y is a softening co-monomer of the E/X/Y copolymers, wherein X is about 3-30 wt. % of the E/X/Y copolymer or partially neutralized ionomers thereof, and Y is about 0-30 wt. % of the E/X/Y copolymer;
- and (b) one or more aliphatic, mono-functional organic acids having fewer than 36 carbon atoms or salts thereof being present in the range of about 25 to about 150 parts per hundred parts by weight of the E/X/Y copolymer, wherein greater than 90% of all the acid of (a) and of (b) is neutralized with a cation source, wherein said thermoplastic composition is melt-processible and the melt-processibility is retained when greater than 90% of the acid of said (a) and (b) is neutralized and wherein neutralization takes place by the addition of the cation source concurrently with the melt blending of (a) and (b) or subsequently to the melt blending of (a) and (b).
A process to make highly-neutralized, melt-processible ionomer comprising the steps of
- (c) Melt-blending (1) at least one ethylene α,β ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acid copolymer or melt-processible ionomer thereof;
- and (2) sufficient non-volatile, non-migratory agent;
- and
- (d) Concurrently or subsequently adding sufficient cation source to neutralize more than 90% of all the acid moieties of the acid copolymer or ionomer thereof and, to the extent that the non-volatile, non-migratory agent contains acid moieties, the acid moieties of the non-volatile, non-migratory agent;
- wherein the ethylene α,β ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acid copolymer or melt-processible ionomer thereof consists essentially of an E/X/Y copolymers or melt-processible ionomer of the E/X/Y copolymer, where E is ethylene, X is a C3 to C8 α,β ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acid, and Y is a softening co-monomer, wherein X is about 3-30 wt. % of the E/X/Y copolymer, and Y is 0 to about 30 wt. % of the E/X/Y copolymer;
- and wherein the non-volatile, non-migratory agent is one or more aliphatic, mono-functional organic acids having fewer than 36 carbon atoms or salts thereof wherein the aliphatic, mono-functional organic acids being present in the range of about 25 to about 150 parts per hundred parts by weight of the E/X/Y copolymer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.