PNEUMATIC TIRE HAVING AIR RETENTION INNERLINER

Abstract: A pneumatic rubber tire having an integral innerliner of a sulfur cured rubber composition comprised of an acrylonitrile/diene copolymer rubber with specified Tg range and at least one designated additional rubber having a Tg of a specified range.

Description: Field This invention relates to a pneumatic tire having an air retention innerliner. Background The inner surface of pneumatic rubber tires is typically comprised of an elastomeric composition designed to prevent or retard the permeation of air and moisture into the carcass from the tire's inner air chamber. It is often referred to as an innerliner. Innerliners have also been used for many years in tubeless pneumatic vehicle tires to retard or prevent the escape of air used to inflate the tire, thereby maintaining tire pressure. Rubbers which are relatively impermeable to air are often used as a major portion of said innerliners and can include butyl rubber and halobutyl rubbers. U.S. Patent No. 3,808,177 discloses other polymers which may also be relatively impermeable. It is known that acrylonitrile/butadiene copolymers can be relatively impermeable. U.S. Patent No. 2,979,490 discloses a tubeless tire innerliner composed of (A) natural rubber and (B) another rubber selected from copolymers of butadiene and styrene, copolymers of butadiene and acrylonitrile and rubbery polymers of chlorobutadiene - together with a specified combination of clay and carbon black. The innerliner is normally prepared by conventional calendering or milling techniques to form a strip of uncured compounded rubber of an appropriate width, which is sometimes referred to as a gum strip. Typically, the gum strip is the first element of the tire to be applied to a tire building drum, over and around which the remainder of the tire is built. When the tire is cured, such innerliner becomes an integral, co-cured, part of the tire. Tire innerliners and methods of preparation are well known to those having skill in such art. The preparation of a gum strip composed entirely of compounded chlorobutyl or bromobutyl rubber has been observed to have some processing and fabrication problems such as sticking to processing equipment during the milling and calendering operations. Furthermore, it has sometimes been desired to provide a gum strip composition for the innerliner which has suitable processing properties, building tack in its uncured state and cured adhesion to the tire carcass while also having a satisfactory degree of air impermeability. Disclosure and Practice of Invention In accordance with this invention, a pneumatic rubber tire is provided having an integral innerliner of a sulfur cured rubber composition comprised of, based on 100 parts by weight rubber, a blend of (A) 20 to 90 parts by weight acrylonitrile/diene copolymer rubber having a Tg (glass transition temperature) in the range of 10°C to -25°C, preferably 0°C to -15°C; and (B) 80 to 10 parts by weight of at least one additional rubber having a Tg in the range of -40°C to -105°C consisting essentially of at least one of styrene/butadiene copolymer rubber, polybutadiene rubber, styrene/isoprene/butadiene rubber, butyl rubber and halobutyl rubber. The acrylonitrile/diene copolymer is intended to include acrylonitrile/butadiene and acrylonitrile/isoprene copolymers, although the preferred rubber is an acrylonitrile/butadiene copolymer. The polybutadiene rubber is intended to include cis 1,4-polybutadiene and medium vinyl polybutadiene rubbers, although it is preferably cis 1,4-polybutadiene rubber. Such rubbers are well known. Preferably, the halobutyl rubber is at least one of chlorobutyl and bromobutyl rubber. Such rubbers are well known. A basic requirement of said additional rubber is for it to have a Tg of -40°C or less, or, in other words, a maximum Tg of -40°C. In the practice of this invention, preferably in such blend where said additional rubber is composed essentially of at least one of, styrene/butadiene rubber, styrene/isoprene/butadiene rubber, the resulting acrylonitrile content in the rubber blend is in the range of 20 to 40 weight percent (based on the rubbers of the rubber blend). In the practice of this invention, preferably in such blend where said additional rubber is composed essentially of at least one of butyl, chlorobutyl and bromobutyl rubber, the resulting acrylonitrile content in the rubber blend is in the range of 5 to 25 weight percent (based on the rubbers of the rubber blend). In practice, the innerliner composition is first prepared as an uncured compounded rubber gum strip, constructed as an inner surface (exposed inside surface) of an uncured rubber tire structure, (carcass), and sulfur co-cured with the tire carcass during the tire curing operation under conditions of heat and pressure. Thus, the innerliner becomes an integral part of the tire by being co-cured therewith as compared to being a simple adherent laminate. It is to be understood that the prescribed innerliner rubbers can be compounded with conventional rubber compounding ingredients comprised of, for example, carbon black, clay, talc, mica, silica, zinc oxide, stearic acid, rubber processing oil, sulfur, accelerator and antidegradant and then typically extruded and/or calendered to form the uncured gum strip. Such rubber compounding materials and methods are well known to those having skill in such art. A particularly desirable feature of such acrylonitrile/butadiene copolymer is its relatively impermeability to air transmission and, thus, its suitability as an air barrier for a tire innerliner. However, such rubber is not normally readily thought of for such purpose because of its relatively high green strength, making its processability and tire building ability more difficult then other rubbers and, also, its relatively high stiffness property, making it considerably less compatible than other rubbers for a tire innerliner environment. While a commercial acrylonitrile/butadiene copolymer rubber typically has a Tg in the range of -20°C to -40°C, although such copolymers can have higher or lower Tgs, such copolymer for application of this invention has a Tg in the range 10°C to -25°C, which is apparently somewhat higher than a topical Tg range of the bulk of commercially prepared acrylonitrile/butadiene rubbers, so that when it is blended with the additional rubber the resultant acrylonitrile content is at a sufficient level to enable the blend to provide a suitable air impermeability while also having a suitable compatibility with the tire carcass to be useful as a tire innerliner candidate. The acrylonitrile/butadiene copolymer rubber for this invention has an acrylonitrile/butadiene ratio in the range of 55/45 to 20/80, preferably 55/45 to 30/70, and a Mooney viscosity (ML-40) in the range of 20 to 90, preferably 25 to 50. It is typically prepared by emulsion polymerization. An important feature of this invention is that the acrylonitrile/diene copolymer blend can have satisfactory air impermeability while maintaining other desirable physical properties when the acrylonitrile/butadiene copolymer is blended with other polymers having glass transition temperatures below -40C; namely styrene/butadiene copolymer rubber, cis 1,4-polybutadiene rubber, butyl rubber, bromobutyl rubber and chlorobutyl rubber. The enhanced properties of such blend can include adhesion to non-nitrile rubber compounds, flex life, and the low temperature brittle point for the cured blend. An improvement in some property(ies) has been observed even if the actual nitrile content is substantially equivalent in both the individual acrylonitrile/diene rubber and the blend of rubbers, thus, the blend of rubbers may be preferred over a rubber compound containing only the acrylonitrile/butadiene rubber. Examples of such observations are shown in Table 1 of the Example included herein. The uncured tire carcass rubber interface with which the innerliner is sulfur co-cured can be of various sulfur curable rubber and rubber blends such as, for example, polybutadiene, and styrene/butadiene copolymer rubbers. Typically the innerliner has an uncured gum thickness in the range of 0.03 to 0.08 inch (0.08-0.2 cm), depending somewhat on the tire size, its intended use and degree of air retention desired. The pneumatic tire with the integral innerliner composition may be constructed in the form of a passenger tire, truck tire, or other type of bias or radial pneumatic tire. The following examples are presented to demonstrate the invention. The parts and percentages are by weight unless otherwise noted. EXAMPLE I Samples of acrylonitrile rubber (control Experiment No. 1) and blends of acrylonitrile rubber with other rubbers (Experiments 2-12), namely, butadiene/styrene rubber, polybutadiene rubber and bromobutyl rubber, were prepared and tested as shown in Tables 1 and 2. The Experiment No. 1 control compound was prepared as based on a single copolymer of acrylonitrile/butadiene having an acrylonitrile/butadiene ratio of 33/67, and the Experiment No. 2 was prepared with a 70/30 ratio blend of acrylonitrile/butadiene copolymer rubber having an acrylonitrile/butadiene ratio of 45/55 and a styrene/butadiene rubber having a styrene/butadiene ratio of 23.5/76.5 to provide a final acrylonitrile content of 31.5 percent in the blend. With the acrylonitrile concentrations being approximately equal in both Experiments No. 1 and No. 2, it can readily be observed that the blend of polymers in Experiment No. 2 resulted in a desirably lower brittle point temperature, much improved flex life, and better adhesion to the carcass compound (70/30 ratio of natural rubber to styrene butadiene copolymer rubber) while having comparable air permeability values. Experiments Nos. 3 and 4 show the results of blends of other elastomers with an acrylonitrile/butadiene copolymer. They illustrate improved flex life over the control (Experiment No. 1), and the solution styrene/butadiene blend of Experiment No. 4 showed an advantage over all the others for adhesion to the carcass compound. The last both blends (Experiments Nos. 3-4) in the Table 1 demonstrate improved air permeability over the first two blends (Experiments Nos. 1 and 2) primarily because the level of Plasticizer SC, a triglycolester of a vegetable fatty acid, was reduced from 15 to 5 parts by weight. The materials were mixed as a two-step mixing process by a size BR Banbury blender in which all of the ingredients were mixed in the first step except for sulfur, accelerators and zinc oxide which were added and mixed in the second step. Experiments Nos. 5-10 are shown in Table 2. Experiments 5 is a Control where the rubber is a bromobutyl rubber. Experiments Nos. 6-10 are blends of acrylonitrile/butadiene rubbers with the bromobutyl rubber and demonstrate that in a blend of bromobutyl rubber with acrylonitrile/butadiene rubber having an acrylonitrile content of 43%, the air permeability was lower (better) than the Control. This is considered predictive of results which would be expected for a tire innerliner with better air retention and thus, also, a potential for preparation of an innerliner of reduced thickness (thus, a potential for reduced weight and cost per tire). The example further demonstrates that the permeability value of the Control could be substantially maintained or retained while, for the blend, the modulus of the cured rubber was enhanced. The rubber compounds for Experiments 1-6 (Table 1) were prepared with 4.1 parts zinc oxide, 1.2 parts accelerator(s) and 1.5 parts sulfur, tackifier resin (1.4 parts for Experiments 1 and 2; 2 parts for Experiments 3-4, 5 parts coumarone-indene resin, 1 part oleic acid, 1 part antioxidant, polyglycolester plasticizer (15 parts for Experiments 1 and 2; 5 parts for Experiments 3-4. The rubber compounds for Experiments 5-10 (Table 2) were compounded with dibutylphthalate (5 parts - Experiment 7); rosin oil (2 parts for Experiments 5 and 9, 4 parts for Experiments 6 and 8, 3 parts for Experiment 7 and 1.5 parts for Experiment 10); processing oil (3 parts for Experiments 5 and 10, and 2 parts for Experiment 9); phenolic tackifier (2 parts for Experiments 5, 6, 7 and 8, 1.5 parts for Experiments 9 and 10); processing aid (10 parts for Experiments 5 and 10, 7 parts for Experiment 9 and 4 parts for Experiments 6, 7 and 8); stearic acid (0.5 parts for Experiments 5 and 10); oleic acid (0.5 parts for Experiments 6, 7, 8 and 9); antioxidant (2 parts for Experiments 6 and 8, 1.5 parts for Experiment 7 and 1 part for Experiment 9); accelerator(s) (1.5 parts for Experiments 5, 7 and 10; 1.4 parts for Experiment 9 and 1.1 for Experiments 6 and 8); zinc oxide (1 part for Experiment 5; 1.5 part for Experiment 10; 3 parts for Experiments 7 and 9; 3.5 parts for Experiments 6 and 8) and sulfur (0.5 parts for Experiments 5, 7 and 9; 0.8 parts for Experiment 12 and 1.3 parts for Experiments 6 and 8). The physical tests were conducted on the cured samples (best cure - 18 minutes at 150°C) using conventional methods.

Claims: A pneumatic rubber tire having an integral innerliner of a sulfur cured rubber composition comprised of, based on 100 parts by weight rubber, a blend of (A) 20 to 90 parts by weight acrylonitrile/diene copolymer rubber having a Tg in the range of 10°C to -25°C; and (B) 80 to 10 parts by weight of at least one additional rubber having a Tg in the range of -40°C to -105°C consisting essentially of at least one of styrene/butadiene copolymer rubber, polybutadiene rubber, styrene/isoprene/butadiene rubber, butyl rubber and halobutyl rubber. The tire of claim 1 where said acrylonitrile/diene copolymer rubber is an acrylonitrile/butadiene rubber having an acrylonitrile/butadiene ratio in the range of 55/45 to 20/80 and a Mooney viscosity (ML-40) in the range of 20 to 90, and where said polybutadiene rubber is cis 1,4-polybutadiene rubber. The tire of claim 1 where the innerliner is comprised of, based on 100 parts by weight rubber, a blend of (A) 20 to 90 parts by weight acrylonitrile/butadiene copolymer rubber having a Tg in the range of 10°C to -25°C and an acrylonitrile/butadiene ratio in the range of 55/45 to 30/70; and (B) 80 to 100 parts by weight of at least one additional rubber having a Tg in the range of -40°C to -105°C consisting essentially of at least one of styrene/butadiene copolymer rubber, cis 1,4-polybutadiene rubber, styrene/isoprene/butadiene rubber, butyl rubber, chlorobutyl rubber and bromobutyl rubber. The tire of claim 3 where said additional rubber consists essentially of at least one of styrene/butadiene copolymer rubber, styrene/isoprene/butadiene rubber and cis 1,4-polybutadiene rubber. The tire of claim 3 where said additional rubber consists essentially of at least one of butyl rubber, chlorobutyl rubber and bromobutyl rubber. The tire of claim 4 where, in said blend, the acrylonitrile content in the rubber blend is in the range of 20 to 40 weight percent, based on the rubbers in the rubber blend. The tire of claim 5 where the acrylonitrile content in the rubber blend is in the range of 5 to 25 weight percent, based on the rubbers in the rubber blend.

Inventors: BEERS, ROGER NEIL, KLEMMENSEN, DANIEL FREDERICK
Applicants: THE GOODYEAR TIRE & RUBBER COMPANY
Application year: 1990
Main classification: B60C1
IPC codes: C08L21, B60C5, C08L9, B60C1, C08L23