The present invention is a, solid block copolymer comprising at least two polymer end blocks A and at least one polymer interior block B wherein each A block is a polymer block resistant to sulfonation and each B block is a polymer block susceptible to sulfonation, and wherein said A and B blocks do not contain any significant levels of olefinic unsaturation. Preferably, each A block comprising one or more segments selected from polymerized (i) para-substituted styrene monomers, (ii) ethylene, (iii) alpha olefins of 3 to 18 carbon atoms; (iv) hydrogenated 1,3-cyclodiene monomers, (v) hydrogenated monomers of conjugated dienes having a vinyl content less than 35 mol percent prior to hydrogenation, (vi) acrylic esters, (vii) methacrylic esters, and (viii) mixtures thereof; and each B block comprising segments of one or more polymerized vinyl aromatic monomers selected from (i) unsubstituted styrene monomers, (ii) ortho-substituted styrene monomers, (iii) meta-substituted styrene monomers, (iv) alpha-methylstyrene, (v) 1,1-diphenylethylene, (vi) 1,2-diphenylethylene and (vii) mixtures thereof. Also claimed are processes for making such block copolymers, and the various end uses and applications for such block copolymers.

Sulfonated block copolymers, method for making same, and various uses for such block copolymers

The disclosed invention provides novel golf ball compositions which contain non-ionic olefinic copolymers produced by use of metallocene catalysts, wherein the metallocene catalyzed polymers have been functionalized with a post-polymerization reaction. The grafted metallocene catalyzed polymers may be blended with ionomers, non-grafted metallocene catalyzed polymers, or other non-ionomeric polymers. These compositions exhibit improved mechanical properties such as tensile and flexural properties, and can be foamed or unfoamed. Golf balls that employ at least one layer of these compositions in any of the golf ball cover, core, or a mantle situated between the cover and the core provide ball properties and performance similar to and in some cases better than the state of the art ionomer based golf balls.

Golf ball incorporating grafted metallocene catalyzed polymer blends

The present invention relates to a golf ball comprising a core layer, at least one intermediate layer, and a cover layer, wherein the core layer or the at least one intermediate layer are formed from compositions comprising a polyamide, in the form of a homopolymer, a copolymer, or mixtures thereof. The compositions comprise about 1 to about 99 weight percent of at least one nonionomer polymer and about 99 to about 1 weight percent of at least one polyamide polymer. The polyamides of the present invention comprise polyamides and polyamide copolymers, such as nylons, nylon copolymers, and nylon block copolymers. The nonionomer polymer comprises a nonionomer thermoplastic elastomer or a nonionomer thermoplastic. The present invention also relates to a method of making a golf ball comprising forming a golf ball core, preparing a composition comprising about 1 to about 99 weight percent of at least one nonionomer polymer and about 99 to about 1 weight percent of at least one polyamide polymer, and molding the blend around the golf ball core to form the golf ball.

Golf ball forming compositions comprising polyamide

Linear viscoelasticity (LVE) of low-ion-content and low-molecular-weight (nonentangled) randomly sulfonated polystyrene shows a sol–gel transition when the average number of ionic groups per chain approaches unity. This transition can be well understood by regarding the number of ionizable sites over a chain as the relevant functionality for cross-linking. For ionomers below but very close to the gel point, the LVE shows power law relaxation similar to gelation of chemical cross-linking. Nevertheless, ionomers near and beyond the gel point also show terminal relaxation not seen in chemically cross-linking systems, which is controlled by ionic dissociation. Careful analysis of the power law region of the frequency dependence of complex modulus close to the gel point shows a change in exponent from ∼1 at high frequency to ∼0.67 at low frequency, which strongly suggests a transition from mean-field to critical percolation known as the Ginzburg point. A mean-field percolation theory by Rubinstein and Semenov ...

Viscoelasticity of Reversible Gelation for Ionomers

The invention provides a golf ball having a core, intermediate layer, cover and/or coating comprising in whole or in part of an anionic polyurethane or polyurea ionomer. The anionic polyurethane or polyurea ionomer preferably comprises a sulfonate or carboxylate group. The anionic polyurethane or polyurea ionomer may be blended with conventional materials employed to form golf balls, cores, intermediate layers and covers. The composition can be foamed or unfoamed.

Golf ball comprising anionic polyurethane or polyurea ionomers and method of making the same

Flexible polymeric compositions are prepared by introducing sulfonate groups into a plastic polymer and plasticizing the ionomer so formed. Plasticization may be limited to plasticizing the amorphous backbone. Preferably the ionic domains of the ionomer are also plasticized using a plasticizer which is effective at processing temperature but ineffective at use temperature. The products of this invention are flexible and have utility as simulated leathers, wire coating insulation, etc.

Robert D. Lundberg

Papers

Flexible polymeric compositions comprising a normally plastic polymer sulfonated to about 0.2 to about 10 mole % sulfonate