Use of curable compositions containing dithiane monomers for golf ball cores
View Patent ↗The present invention is directed to a golf ball and, more particularly, a golf ball core having a curable core composition comprising a dithiane compound, a rubber based compound comprising cis-1,4-polybutadiene rubber, a crosslinking agent comprising a metallic salt of unsaturated carboxylic acid in an amount between 10 to 50 parts per hundred of rubber (pphr), a peroxide initiator, one or more filler materials, and optionally an organ sulfur compound, are used to provide soft and resilient cores.
1. A golf ball comprising:
a core; and a cover, the core comprising:
a rubber based compound comprising cis-1,4-polybutadiene rubber;
a crosslinking agent comprising a metallic salt of unsaturated carboxylic acid in an amount between 10 to 50 parts per hundred of rubber;
a peroxide initiator; and
a dithiane compound represented by the following chemical formula
wherein X and X′ are each independently an —O— or —NR 1 —, where R 1 is an H or a C 1 -C 4 alkyl group;
each R 5 is independently an H, or a C 1 -C 4 alkyl group,
R 4 is an organic radical having a valence of x+y,
n is 3 to 6,
m is 1 to 3,
o is 1 to 3,
x and y are at least 1,
one or more methylene groups on the dithiane ring may be substituted with C 1 -C 4 alkyl group, and adjacent alkyl groups may be joined with the carbon atoms to which they are attached to form a carbocyclic ring.
2. The golf ball of claim 1 , wherein the core composition comprises between about 0.25 and 5 pphr of the dithiane compound.
3. The golf ball of claim 1 , wherein the dithiane compound comprises at least one monomer that comprises a cyclic dithiane moiety linked to a (meth)acryloyl moiety.
4. The golf ball of claim 1 , wherein the dithiane compound comprises at least one or more dithiane monomers.
5. The golf ball of claim 1 , further comprising: one or more filler materials.
6. The gold ball of claim 1 , wherein the core has a range of hardness gradient range from −4 to 8 in JIS C Scale.
7. The golf ball of claim 6 , wherein the core has a range of hardness gradient less than 0 to 4 in JIS C Scale.
8. The golf ball of claim 1 , further comprising an intermediate layer formed from a thermoplastic or thermoset material.
9. The golf ball of claim 8 , further comprising an inner and outer cover layer formed from a thermoplastic or thermoset material.
10. The golf ball of claim 9 , wherein at least one of the cover layers comprises a material selected from a group consisting of: ionomeric material, polyolefins, polyurethanes, polyureas, polyamides, acrylic resins, polyphenylene oxide resins, thermoplastic polyesters, thermoplastic vulcanized rubbers, fully-neutralize polymers, polycarbonates, polybutylene terephthalates, partially-neutralized polymers, and mixtures thereof.
11. The golf ball of claim 9 , wherein the cover has a thermoset composition comprising at least one of a UV absorber, as hindered amine light stabilizer, or an optical brightener.
12. The golf ball of claim 9 , wherein the intermediate and inner cover layer comprise a moisture resistant composition having a moisture vapor transition rate (MVTR) of 12.5 gmil/100 in 2 /day or less.
13. The golf ball of claim 1 , wherein the peroxide initiator is in an amount between 0.25 to 1.5 pphr.
14. The golf ball of claim 1 , further comprising: an organo sulfur compound.
15. The golf ball of claim 1 , further comprising: an antioxidant.
16. A method of manufacturing a golf ball, comprising: providing the core composition comprising a dithiane compound of claim 1 .