Melt-Processable Golf Ball Ionomer Composition
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional golf balls face challenges in processing highly crosslinked ionomers due to their low melt flow properties, making it difficult to maintain desirable properties like coefficient of restitution, compression, and hardness while being moldable.
Innovation Solution
A golf ball composition incorporating a mixture of ionomer, ethylene propylene rubber, polymeric epoxy crosslinker, and compatibilizing polymer, which allows for melt processability without sacrificing target properties, by confining the highly-crosslinked ionomer in a discontinuous phase within a moldable thermoplastic continuous phase.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If highly crosslinked ionomers are used to achieve desirable CoR, compression, and hardness, then the golf ball performance is improved, but the processability is worsened due to low melt flow properties
Solution Approach 1:
The composition is segmented into distinct phases: a continuous thermoplastic phase providing processability and a dispersed highly crosslinked ionomer phase providing performance. This phase separation allows each component to contribute its advantageous properties without compromising the other.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite material system combining thermoplastic polymers with highly crosslinked ionomer particles. This composite structure enables the material to exhibit both the melt processability of thermoplastics and the superior mechanical properties of crosslinked ionomers.
2Strength
If high levels of crosslinking are applied to ionomers to achieve excellent toughness and resilience, then the material properties are improved, but the processability is worsened making the composition intractable
Solution Approach 1:
The ionomer crosslinking is performed preliminarily before final product formation. Pre-formed highly crosslinked ionomer particles are dispersed into the thermoplastic matrix, allowing the crosslinking reaction to occur under controlled conditions where processability is not yet required.
Solution Approach 2:
The thermoplastic polymer acts as an intermediary medium that facilitates processing while the highly crosslinked ionomer particles provide reinforcement. The thermoplastic matrix enables melt processing and molding, while the crosslinked particles contribute strength and toughness.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables the production of golf balls with maintained CoR, compression, and hardness, while being melt processable, overcoming the processing difficulties of highly crosslinked ionomers.
Implementation Method 1
highly-crosslinked ionomeric material
Implementation Method 2
compatibilizing polymer synergistically created a melt processable composition
Implementation Method 3
a discrete, discontinuous, highly crosslinked ionomer/precursor and polymeric epoxy crosslinker portion was dispersed throughout and contained within an inert, moldable thermoplastic continuous phase
Data Source
AI summary
Golf ball incorporating layer(s) of a mixture consisting of: i) ionomer(s); ii) ethylene propylene rubber(s)(EPR(s)); iii) polymeric epoxy crosslinker(s); and iv) compatibilizing polymer(s). The ionomer(s) and EPR(s) may be included in a blend in a wt % ratio of from about 85:15 to 55:45; the at least one polymeric epoxy crosslinker and compatibilizing polymer may be included in amounts, based on 100 parts of the blend, of from about 2.0 to about 10.0 parts; and from about 1.0 to about 10.0 parts, respectively. Each ionomer, EPR, polymeric epoxy crosslinker, and compatibilizing polymer has a density less than 1.0 g/cm3. The mixture is melt processable/moldable without meanwhile sacrificing target CoR, DCM compression, Shore D hardness, and Shore C hardness.