EP1827622B1 - Sliding coating for winter sports equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

According to the invention, a sliding coating for winter sports equipment is provided, which has a copolymer (I) and optionally a copolymer (II), wherein the sliding coating for a winter sports equipment comprises a copolymer (I) having 10% or more of structural building blocks derived from propylene monomers, based on the total number of the structural building blocks of the copolymer (I), and 1% or more of structural building blocks derived from another olefin, based on the total number of the structural building blocks of the copolymer (I), wherein the sliding coating does not have a copolymer, which has 50% or more of structural building blocks derived from ethylene monomers, based on the total number of the structural building blocks of the copolymer.

Description

The invention relates to a sliding coating for winter sports equipment, especially for skis and snowboards. The sliding coating can be extruded from a polymer mass in a simple manner. The invention further relates to the coated with the sliding coating winter sports equipment.

The quality of winter sports equipment used for gliding e.g. are determined on snow, especially skis and snowboards, is determined to a large extent by their sliding properties. Therefore, such winter sports equipment usually have a lubricious coating, which should improve the sliding properties of the equipment on snow. Such a slide coating consists essentially of a film which is glued to the skis or snowboards with the aid of suitable adhesives. Such a lubricious coating should be as hydrophobic as possible to ensure a good slip.

Due to its excellent sliding properties over a very wide range of different types of snow was used as the material for the slip coating first Low pressure polyethylene used ( CH-A 601394 ), but has problems with mechanical strength and wear resistance. These problems are solved by the use of highest molecular weight polyethylene (PE-UHMW), however, coatings of PE-UHMW can not be produced by extrusion, but must be prepared consuming eg by pressing, sintering and subsequent peeling ( CH-A 601394 ).

There are a number of proposals to solve these problems and to improve the sliding coatings, for example by using a polyethylene-based crosslinkable polymer obtainable by extrusion ( CH-A 601394 ) or by the inclusion of water-soluble compounds in the sliding coating ( CH-A 601392 ). A recent development proposes a sliding coating of polytetrafluoroethylene ( AT-B 394 951 ), which, however, is not very advantageous for reasons of cost and moreover does not adequately solve the problems of sliding linings for winter sports equipment. None of these proposals has been implemented in practice, and modern skis or snowboards usually have a PE-UHMW slip coating which, due to the high degree of crystallinity, has the highest mechanical and chemical resistance of the polyethylenes. This polyethylene was originally used in medical technology for the manufacture of hip joints and is powdered using conventional antistatic agents and lubricants such as thermosets in pressing and sintering processes.

It is also known to improve the sliding properties of sliding coatings in that a surface structure is applied, which further improves the hydrophobic properties of the coating. A difficulty, however, is that the effect of the surface structure no longer occurs when the structure is damaged, for example, by slight mechanical influences during use.

The lubricity of skis is also improved by the use of special waxes, which is usually still required in skis provided with a slide coating. The reason for the use of waxes is, on the one hand, that they improve the hydrophobic properties of the lubricious coating and, on the other hand, that polyethylene, like almost all plastics, practically does not change its surface hardness in a temperature range of about + 20 to -20 ° C. while change the sliding properties of the snow due to temperature. Accordingly, waxes are used by various additives for the different temperatures and Are designed at lower snow temperatures a harder surface is desired and at higher snow temperatures a softer surface. In addition, waxes are also available which, in addition to the setting of the surface hardness, form nanostructures which produce a lotus effect and thus ensure a completely non-wettable surface. However, the use of waxes is complicated and the proper selection of a wax is difficult. In practice, several waxes must be kept in stock to be able to react appropriately to different snow conditions.

The WO 2004/069352 discloses slip liners for winter sports equipment constructed on a blend of two different copolymers wherein one of the copolymers is a copolymer of propylene and at least one other olefin consisting of at least 50% backbone building blocks derived from propylene monomers, based on the total number of Scaffold building blocks, and the other copolymer is a copolymer of ethylene and at least one further olefin containing at least 50% of scaffold building blocks derived from ethylene, based on the total number of scaffold building blocks. The in the WO 2004/069352 described Gleitbeläge or winter sports equipment having these sliding coatings already have excellent properties, especially with regard to their lubricity. However, the expert in the production of corresponding winter sports equipment with sliding coatings is very limited in terms of the copolymer system to be used.

There is therefore a need for sliding linings for winter sports equipment and winter sports equipment, which have such Gleitbeläge where the sliding coating is composed of other polymers or polymer blends and at least the same good, but preferably even better mechanical properties and especially sliding properties than the winter sports equipment or Sliding coverings coming from the WO 2004/069352 are known.

Surprisingly, it has been found that sliding linings for winter sports equipment not in the WO 2004/069352 but comprising at least one copolymer (I) which comprises 10% or more of building blocks derived from propylene monomers, based on the total number of scaffold building blocks and 1 wt .-% or more of scaffold building blocks, of a derive from other olefin, also based on the total number of Scaffold building blocks in the copolymer have excellent sliding properties similar to those of the WO 2004/069352 comparable or even superior.

According to the invention, the copolymer (I) preferably has a flexural strength in the range of 200 MPa - 3000 MPa, preferably 500 MPa - 3000 MPa. Preferred lower limits of the flexural strength are 700 MPa and 900 MPa, preferred upper limits of the flexural strength of the copolymer (I) are 2000 MPa and 1500 MPa. This results in particularly preferred ranges for the flexural strength of the copolymer (I) of 700-2000 MPa, more preferably 800-1500 MPa, for example about 900 MPa, about 1000 MPa or about 1100 MPa.

While it is surprisingly possible according to the invention to provide a sliding coating which has only a single copolymer of propylene and a further olefin, it is preferred according to the invention for at least one further copolymer of propylene and a further olefin to be present hereinafter Copolymer (II). The copolymer (II) is also a copolymer based on propylene, so that the sliding lining which is particularly preferred according to the invention comprises a mixture of two copolymers which have both units derived from propylene.

Preferably, one of the two copolymers has a high flexural strength, a high softening temperature and a high Shore D hardness, and the second propylene-based copolymer has a lower flexural strength, a lower softening temperature, and a lower Shore D hardness.

According to the invention, there is therefore provided a sliding covering for winter sports equipment which comprises at least one copolymer which comprises 10% of the scaffold building blocks derived from propene monomers and comprising at least 1% of scaffold building blocks derived from at least one further olefin and used as copolymer ( I) is called. According to the invention, a sliding lining for a winter sports device is also provided, which contains at least one further copolymer (II) in addition to the copolymer (I). The invention also relates to winter sports equipment, in particular skis, which are equipped with such a sliding coating.

Unlike the sliding coating that comes from the WO2004 / 069352 is known, the sliding coating of the invention contains no copolymer containing 50% or more of scaffold building blocks which originate from ethylene monomers, based on the total number of scaffold building blocks.

Copolymer (I) is a copolymer of propylene and at least one other olefin. Copolymer (I) preferably contains at least 10%, more preferably at least 30%, even more preferably at least 50%, of backbone building blocks derived from propylene monomers, based on the total number of backbone building blocks. However, these scaffold building blocks do not make up more than 99% of the copolymer, based on the total number of scaffold building blocks. Copolymer (I) preferably has from 70 to 99%, more preferably from 75 to 98%, in particular from 80 to 95%, for example about 90%, scaffold building blocks derived from propylene monomers (in each case based on the total number of scaffold building blocks).

The copolymer (I) additionally contains scaffold building blocks which originate from at least one further olefin, in particular from ethylene or a C ₄ -C ₁₂ olefin. The proportion of the further olefin (the other olefins) makes up the remainder of the copolymer (I) (to 100% of the scaffold building blocks), so that the copolymer (I) is preferably a propylene / ethylene copolymer or a copolymer of propylene with one or more C ₄ -C ₁₂ olefins or a copolymer of propylene, ethylene and one or more C ₄ -C ₁₂ olefins. It is also possible to use, for example, an ethylene / propylene diene terpolymer (EPDM) which, in addition to propylene and ethylene or a C ₄ -C ₁₂ olefin, may also contain dienes such as cyclooctadiene, dicyclopentadiene and / or hexadiene. It is also possible that higher olefins or dienes are present in the copolymer (I).

When the copolymer (I) is used together with a copolymer (II), it is preferred that the copolymer (I) has a higher Vicat softening temperature, a higher flexural strength and a higher Shore D hardness than the copolymer (II).

In the present invention, the flexural strength of the copolymer (I) is preferably at least 50 MPa higher than the flexural strength of the copolymer (II), more preferably at least 100 MPa higher, more preferably at least 500 MPa higher, e.g. about 900 MPa or 1000 MPa or 1100 MPa higher than the flexural strength of the copolymer (II).

In the present invention, the Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 of the copolymer (I) is more preferably at least 5 ° C, more preferably at least 20 ° C at least 50 ° C, eg, about 90 ° C or 95 ° C higher than the Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 of the copolymer (II).

According to the invention, the Shore D hardness of the copolymer (I) is preferably at least 5 units, more preferably at least 10 units, more preferably at least 20 units, e.g. about 30 or 35 units higher than the Shore D hardness of the copolymer (II).

The flexural strength of the copolymer (I) is preferably in the range of 200 MPa - 3000 MPa, preferably 500 MPa - 3000 MPa. Preferred lower limits for flexural strength are 800 MPa and 1000 MPa. Preferred upper limits for the flexural strength of the copolymer (I) are 2000 MPa and 1500 MPa. Therefore, preferred ranges of the flexural strength of the copolymer (I) are 800 MPa to 2,000 MPa, more preferably 900 MPa to 1,500 MPa, and most preferably, a value of about 1,000 MPa is most preferable.

Also preferred according to the invention is that the copolymer (I) has a Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 in the range from 80 ° C to 250 ° C. Preferred lower limit values for Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 are 100 ° C and 130 ° C. Preferred upper limit values for the Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 are 200 ° C and 170 ° C. As a result, the most preferable ranges for the Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 of the copolymer (I) are from 100 ° C to 200 ° C, more preferably from 130 ° C to 170 ° C. Most preferred is a Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 of about 150 ° C.

Also preferred according to the invention is that the Shore D hardness of the copolymer (I) is in the range of 50 to 90. Preferred lower limits for the Shore D hardness are 55 and 60, preferred upper limits for the Shore D hardness are 80 and 70. Thus, the most preferred range for the Shore D hardness of the copolymer (I) of 55 to 80, more preferably from 60 to 70. Most preferred is a copolymer (I) having a Shore D hardness of about 65.

The most preferred copolymers (I) according to the invention are commercially available. If the copolymer (I) is not used in admixture with another copolymer having units derived from propylene monomers, for example If the copolymer (I) is used in admixture with a copolymer (II) as defined below, the product Hostalen PP EPD60R (flexural strength ISO 178: 1050 MPa; Vicat softening temperature ISO 306 A / 50: 151 ° C; Shore D ISO 868: 64) from Basell.

When the copolymer (I) is used in admixture with the copolymer (II), the copolymer (I) preferably makes 1 to 99% by weight, more preferably 95 to 50% by weight, especially 95 to 70% by weight, eg about 90 wt .-% of the mixture of the copolymers (I) and (II).

The copolymer (II) is also a copolymer of propylene and at least one other olefin, but preferably exhibits lower flexural strength, softening temperature and Shore D hardness than the copolymer (I). With regard to the composition of the copolymer (II) can be made to the comments on copolymer (I), however, in the present invention particularly preferred embodiment in which the sliding coating for winter sports equipment, a mixture of copolymer (I) and copolymer (II) has particularly preferred the structure of the copolymer (II) and / or the content of comonomers in the copolymer (II) other than in the copolymer (I), whereby different parameters in bending strength, softening temperature and Shore D hardness are obtained. Thus, the copolymer (II) is a copolymer of propylene and at least one other olefin, in particular of ethylene and / or a C ₄ -C ₁₂ olefin. The copolymer (II) is preferably a copolymer of propylene and ethylene or a copolymer of propylene and one or more C ₄ -C ₁₂ olefins or a copolymer of propylene, ethylene and one or more C ₄ -C _12- olefins. The copolymer (11) may also contain dienes such as cycloacetadiene, dicycloapentadiene and / or hexadiene. Higher olefins or dienes may also be present in the copolymer (II).

According to the invention, it is preferable that the flexural strength of the copolymer (II) is in the range of 1 MPa to 500 MPa. Preferred lower limits for the flexural strength of the copolymer (II) are 10 MPa and 20 MPa, and preferred upper limits for the flexural strength of the copolymer (II) are 200 MPa and 100 MPa. More preferably, the flexural strength of the copolymer (II) is in the range of 10 MPa to 200 MPa, more preferably 20 MPa up to 100 MPa. Particularly preferred is a copolymer (II) having a flexural strength of about 30 MPa.

Also preferred according to the invention is that the Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 of the copolymer (II) is in the range of 1 ° C to 80 ° C. Preferred lower limits of the Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 of the copolymer (II) are 30 ° C and 40 ° C, preferred upper limits being 70 ° C and 60 ° C. Particularly preferred ranges of the Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 for the copolymer (II) thus result to 30 to 70 ° C and 40 to 60 ° C. In particular, a copolymer (II) having a Vicat softening temperature of about 55 ° C is preferred.

Also preferred according to the invention is that the Shore D hardness of the copolymer (II) is in the range of 1 to 50. Preferred lower limits of the Shore D hardness are 20 and 25, preferred upper limits of the Shore D hardness are 35 and 40. Particularly preferred ranges for the Shore D hardness of the copolymer (II) are therefore from 20 to 40 and from 25 to 35. In particular, a copolymer having a Shore D hardness of about 30 is preferred.

The preferred copolymers (II) which can be used according to the invention are commercially available, for example Adflex Q 100 F (flexural strength ISO 178: 80 MPa, Vicat softening temperature ISO 306 A / 50: 55 ° C., Shore D ISO 868: 30) from Basell.

The copolymer (II) makes preferably 1 to 90% by weight, more preferably 5 to 50% by weight, more preferably 5 to 30% by weight, for example, about 10% by weight of the mixture of the copolymers (I) and (II).

Both the copolymer (I) and the copolymer (II) may be random copolymers. However, at least the copolymer (I) is preferably a block copolymer in which the comonomers have been polymerized onto a polypropylene block. For example, copolymer (11) may be a copolymer in which blocks of polypropylene have been bonded together via the comonomers. The properties of the copolymer may then be e.g. be varied over the block length of the polypropylene.

The term "copolymers" as used in this specification includes not only copolymers of two monomer units but also copolymers consisting of more than two different monomer units, especially three different ones Monomer units or four different monomer units are constructed. The term "copolymers" as used herein thus includes in particular terpolymers. As used herein, the term "olefin" includes compounds having one or more double bonds, preferably one or two double bonds (dienes), which preferably contain not more than 16, more preferably not more than 10, carbon atoms and which are branched or can be unbranched.

Preferably, the mixture of the copolymer (I) and the copolymer (II) has a flexural strength in the range of 200 MPa - 3000 MPa, preferably 500 MPa - 3000 MPa. Preferred lower limits of the bending strength are 700 MPa and 900 MPa, preferred upper limits of the flexural strength of the polymer mixture are 2000 MPa and 1500 MPa. This results in particularly preferred ranges for the bending strength of the mixture of copolymer (I) and copolymer (II) from 700 to 2000 MPa, more preferably from 800 to 1500 MPa. It is particularly preferred that the mixture has a flexural strength of about 1000 MPa.

The use of a mixture of copolymer (I) and copolymer (II) allows a "fine tuning" of the properties of the sliding coating, which can be particularly well adjusted to certain requirements, which is not possible when using only the copolymer (I).

The Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 of the mixture of the two copolymers is preferably in the range of 80 ° C to 250 ° C. Preferred lower limits for the Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 are 100 ° C and 110 ° C, preferred upper limits are 200 ° C and 170 ° C. Particularly preferred ranges of the Vicat softening temperature VST / A / 50 of the mixture of the two copolymers are therefore 100 to 200 ° C, more preferably 110 to 150 ° C, e.g. 130 ° C.

Preferably, the Shore D hardness of the mixture of the two copolymers in the range of 50 to 90. Preferred lower limits for the Shore D hardness are 55 and 60, preferred upper limits at 80 and 70. This results in particularly preferred ranges for the Shore D. Hardness of the mixture of the two copolymers from 55 to 80 and 60 to 70. Particularly preferred is a copolymer mixture having a Shore D hardness of about 67.

The copolymers used according to the invention are commercially available or can be prepared by a person skilled in the art on the basis of a few routine experiments. Overall, the bending strength, the Shore D hardness and the Vicat softening temperature can be reduced, especially in copolymers with a polypropylene block, by reducing the content of propylene in the copolymer. Therefore, in the embodiment of the invention, in US Pat Mixture of copolymer (I) and copolymer (II) are used, the copolymers (I) usually have a higher content of propylene units than the copolymers (II). How to make copolymers with the appropriate parameters, but belongs to the general expertise of a polymer chemist.

However, corresponding copolymers are also commercially available, for example, from Basell and Exxon, as well as Borealis.

According to the invention, a softening temperature is always understood to mean a Vicat softening temperature which has been determined in accordance with the specification ISO 306: 2004. According to this ISO standard, there are four methods for determining the Vicat softening temperature of thermoplastic materials, namely a method A50 using a force of 10 N and a heating rate of 50 ° C per hour, a method B50 in which a Force of 50 N and a heating rate of 50 ° C per hour, a method A120 using a force of 10 N and a heating rate of 120 ° C per hour and a method B120 using a force of 50 N and a heating rate of 120 ° C is used. According to the invention, all Vicat softening temperatures were determined by Method A50, that is, using a force of 10 N and a heating rate of 50 ° C per hour. For details of the method, reference is made to the corresponding ISO standard.

According to the invention, the flexural strengths were determined according to ISO 178: 2001, that is, the bending strength of a 3 point bending load at 23 ° C. For details of the determination refer to the corresponding ISO standard.

According to the invention, the Shore hardness is determined according to ISO standard 868: 2003. ISO standard 868: 2003 defines two methods for determining Shore hardness, Type A, for softer materials and Type B, which is intended for harder materials. In principle, the Shore hardness is measured with a test probe. The measure of the hardness is the penetration depth, wherein the force is applied by a calibrated spring. It is measured for 3 seconds at room temperature (23 ° C). According to the invention, the D-method (or the D-scale) is measured for harder materials, using a cone (needle with a rounded tip, R = 0.1 mm). For details of the procedure, reference is made to the corresponding ISO standard.

Advantageously, the copolymer or the copolymer mixture for the production of the sliding coating according to the invention still one or more known per se, suitable for polypropylene lubricants. If lubricants are present, they are preferably in an amount of from 0.1 to 30% by weight or from 5 to 30% by weight, more preferably in an amount of from 0.5 to 10% by weight or from 1 to 10 wt .-%, for example in an amount of about 1% by weight or about 3% by weight, based on the total weight of the copolymer (I) or, optionally, the mixture of copolymer (I) and copolymer (II). More preferably, a lubricant is used which is a conventional hydrophobic lubricant e.g. based on high temperature stable primary or secondary fatty acids, such as primary fatty acid amines, or carboxylic acid esters. Also particularly preferred is a mixture of a lubricant based on high-temperature-stable primary fatty acids with one or more carboxylic acid esters. Common commercial products are the products Hecoslip 103 PO and Hecoslip 114 PP from Hecoplast GmbH (Iserlohn, Germany). Particularly preferably, a mixture of a high-temperature-stable primary fatty acid and a carboxylic acid ester in a ratio of about 1: 2 is used.

Furthermore, the sliding coatings according to the invention may also contain customary antistatic agents, in particular the antistatic additives known for polypropylene, such as carboxylic acid esters. Such antistatics, if present, are preferably in an amount of from 0.1 to 30% by weight or 5 to 30% by weight, more preferably from 0.5 to 10% by weight, for example, in an amount of about 1 wt .-%, based on the total weight of the copolymer I or, optionally, the mixture of copolymer (I) and copolymer (II) present.

Furthermore, the sliding linings according to the invention may contain customary nucleating agents, in particular nucleating agents customary for polypropylene. Nucleating agents are nucleating agents such as sodium benzoate, which were first introduced in the 1960's and are available, for example, from Henkel KGaA (Dusseldorf, Germany) or Hecoplast GmbH (Iserlohn, Germany). According to the invention, preference is given to organic nucleating agents, such as sugar-based nucleating agents, like sorbitol acetals. A preferred commercial product is the product Heconuk 484PP from Hecoplast. Such nucleating agents, if present, are preferably in an amount of from 0.1 to 30 wt%, more preferably from 0.5 to 10 wt%, for example, in an amount of about 2 wt% on the weight of the copolymer (I) present.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the sliding coatings according to the invention comprise both at least one nucleating agent as defined above and at least one lubricant as defined above, in each case in the preferred amounts specified above. It is also preferred that the lubricant is bound partly or wholly to the nucleating agent. If a nucleating agent is present, preference is given to using primary fatty acids and / or secondary fatty acids as lubricant, preferably in a proportion of 1 to 90% by weight, based on the total weight of the nucleating agent, more preferably in a proportion of 1 to 10% by weight on the total weight of the nucleating agent, in particular in a proportion of about 7 wt .-% based on the total weight of the nucleating agent.

In the preferred embodiment, in which the sliding coating contains both a nucleating agent and a lubricant which is optionally or (preferably) partially bonded to the nucleating agent, a mixture of a high-temperature-stable primary fatty acid and a carboxylic ester in a ratio of about 1:10 used.

Other customary additives may also be present in the sliding coating according to the invention, such as additives for improving the hydrophobic and antistatic properties or the weathering resistance and the scratch resistance, in particular silicon compounds, in particular inorganic silicon compounds such as silica, maleic anhydride, carbon black and fluorine or fluorinated hydrocarbons , Optionally, pigments such as TiO ₂ are also present. The most suitable amounts of such additives can be readily determined by routine experimentation, and any additive present is preferably present in an amount of from 0.05 to 3% by weight, more preferably from 0.1 to 2% by weight in each case based on the weight of the copolymer (I) or of the mixture of copolymer (I) and copolymer (II). Particularly preferred are sliding linings according to the invention, the one Lubricating agent, a nucleating agent, a silicon compound and maleic anhydride.

The silicon compound is particularly preferably hydrophobic, pyrogenic silica which is present in the form of nanoparticles. The nanoparticles preferably have a BET surface area (DIN 66131) in the range from 80 to 300 m ² / g, preferably in the range from 110 to 260 m ² / g, for example 160 m ² / g ± 25 m ² / g. Such products are available, for example, under the name Aerosil from Degussa. Particularly preferred according to the invention is the product Aerosil R8200.

The maleic anhydride serves as a hydrophobizing agent, but also as a coupling agent for the nanoparticles. The maleic anhydride is also commercially available, in the examples, the product was Exxelor Exxon Mobil used, but other maleic anhydrides can of course be used.

Furthermore, it is possible to add to the sliding coating customary light stabilizers, in particular light protection systems for polyolefins and particularly preferred light protection systems for polypropylene. Such sunscreen systems are known in the art. For example, these are systems based on sterically hindered amines, and the HALS light protection concentrate Hecostab 372 from Hecoplast can be mentioned as a special product.

If the ski is intended for high performance applications, such as racing, special impregnations can be applied in the usual way, which can preferably bond to polypropylene and in the short term improve the hydrophobic and antistatic properties and additionally strengthen the surface hardness. Here can be mentioned a mixture of fluorinated isopropanol and water.

Surprisingly, it has been found that the copolymer (I) optionally in admixture with copolymer (II) and optionally further additives as defined above, can be processed by a simple extrusion process into a film, which is particularly outstanding as a sliding coating for winter sports equipment and in particular for Skis and snowboards are suitable. The coating changes its hardness in a temperature range from + 20 to -20 ° C such that it becomes harder with decreasing temperature, an effect which heretofore has been achieved only by the use of waxes.

In addition, the sliding liners of the present invention exhibit excellent notched impact strength and strength comparable to that of polyethylene based liners, at least as far as the requirements placed on winter sports equipment are concerned.

The copolymers or copolymer mixtures for the production of the sliding coating according to the invention can be processed in the usual way. A particular advantage of the copolymers or copolymer mixtures is that they can be formed into sliding coatings by conventional extrusion processes, for example by flat film extrusion processes. The press-sintering processes required for other polymers such as PE-UHMW are not necessary according to the invention. The processing can therefore according to the invention in conventional single and twin screw extruders, especially in three-zone screw extruders with mixing part, preferably in meshing three-zone twin-screw extruder with mixing part done. The extrusion tools are known to those skilled in the art, and common beam or hanger tools may be mentioned as examples. Conventional calendering or smoothing roller systems can be used for calibration, in particular so-called chill-roll systems.

It is also advantageous according to the invention to apply to the sliding coating a surface structure which causes the lowest possible wettability. Surprisingly, it has been found that in the sliding coating according to the invention, on which a surface structure has been applied in a conventional manner, the wettability is particularly greatly reduced, so that a lotus effect also occurs without the use of a wax.

Another advantage of the invention results from the fact that the propylene copolymer has a so-called "memory effect" which occurs when the surface structure is still applied below the molecular freezing limit. Due to the memory effect, the surface structure recovers itself if it has been slightly damaged by mechanical effects.

The surface structure is applied to the sliding surface in the same way as is known in skis, for example by the use of structured Smoothing rolls. As mentioned above, it is preferable that the surface structure is applied to the sliding layer before the molecular freezing point.

The sliding coating according to the invention generally has a thickness of 0.1 to 10 mm, preferably 0.5 to 5 mm, in particular of about 1 mm.

The sliding lining according to the invention can be attached to winter sports equipment, in particular skis or snowboards, in the usual way. In this case, it is particularly preferred to coat the sliding coating with suitable adhesives, e.g. the common hot melt adhesives or, with a hot melt adhesive plastic, e.g. a polyamide resin or an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer or its modifications to the winter sports equipment. The sliding coating can also be connected to the device in other known manner. Prior to application, the winter sports equipment, especially the ski or snowboard, may be subjected to conventional pretreatment such as brushing, sandblasting, degreasing, etching or pickling, and the slip coating may be subjected to conventional surface treatment such as e.g. a corona treatment, flame treatment, primer treatment or ozone shower are subjected.

The following examples illustrate the invention.

example 1

Mixture: 90kg Hostalen PP EPD60R, 10kg Adflex Q 100F, 2kg Heconuk 484PP, 2kg Hecostab 372, 1kg Hecoslip 103PO, 1kg Exxelor maleic anhydride, 2kg Aerosil R8200.

Example 2

Mixture: 100kg Adstif EA 648P, 2kg Heconuk 484PP, 2kg Hecostab 372, 1kg Hecoslip 103PO, 1kg Exxelor maleic anhydride, 2kg Aerosil R8200.

The above ingredients of the mixtures were mixed together for 30 minutes each in a conventional mixer. Subsequently, the blends were each extruded in a flat film extrusion line with a three-zone single-screw extruder of the brand Colin with a chill-roll mill with smoothing mill to a 1 mm thick film. The surface treatment was carried out with a common ski stone grinding machine of the brand Montana.

test example

From the products of Examples 1 and 2, small sample chips (5 cm × 5 cm) were ground with abrasive paper having a grain size of approximately 8 μm and an abrasive paste having a particle size of approximately 100 nm, whereby a lotus effect was imparted to the surface of the sliding coating. After washing out of the grinding residues, an extremely lubricious surface was obtained, on which water droplets rolled off in a spherical shape.

Upon cooling the film showed a strong increase in surface hardness, when heated, a decrease in surface hardness.

The films were applied to a ski and snowboard using conventional adhesive in a known manner. Subsequently, these winter sports equipment were driven in wet snow, cold and dry snow, and artificial snow sample to perform a qualitative slip test in practice. As a reference skis and snowboards were used, which were equipped with the highest quality commercially available PE-UHMW sintered linings of the brand P-TEX. The reference floor coverings were finished with the same sanding pattern on the same stone grinding machine mentioned above the test ends, and professional, as usual for racing use prepared with appropriate waxes for the respective snow temperature.

In comparison, the winter sports equipment with the new coverings according to the invention appeared inferior to the conventional in any way. On the contrary, especially in wet snow, the products according to the invention easily appeared superior to sintered linings.

In the following, the inventive coating of Example 1 described above is referred to as FX SmartBase NANO, that of Example 2 as FX SmartBase NANO B.

For quantitative analysis, the following experimental set-up was used, which allows an objective comparison of the sliding properties of the novel coverings FX SmartBase NANO and NANO B with waxed reference coverings. The construction is in FIG. 1 shown.

Slope angle α of snow defined on an inclined plane should slide down a slide with the covering to be tested as a running surface. The carriage is initially held by a magnet. If this triggers, the time starts and the slide passes through three light barriers (L1, L2, L3).

Here, the first time t1 is taken on the first distance x1 (5.5 cm) from the magnet to L1. Then at the second distance x2 (50cm) to the light barrier L2 the second time t2 and finally at the third distance x3 (50cm) to the light barrier L3 the third time t3.

To control a CPU from Jetter model nano b was used.
The magnet was an IBS electric magnet with 24V input voltage.
The photoelectric sensors used by IDEC were infrared photocells with a range of 80 cm and a reaction time of 1 ms.

Were compared with an area of 80 cm ² with hot and cold snow FX Smartbase NANO and NANO B with the reference pad P-Tex lining samples, which was prepared in the respective snow conditions related with a suitable wax.

All samples were coated on a stone grinding machine made by Montana according to the Crystal Glide Finish method with the same allround structure as used in FIG. 2 is shown.

For the warm and wet snow tests, the wax Eclipse EC1 High Fluor + 8 ° ... 3 ° C from Star SkiWax was used at a snow temperature of -2 ° C and an air temperature of + 2 ° C.

For the cold and dry snow tests, the wax Eclipse EC2 High Fluor 0 ° ... -10 ° C from Star SkiWax was used at a snow temperature of -6 ° C and an air temperature of -4 ° C.

The wax was applied to the P-Tex samples with a TOKO wax iron. Thereafter, the samples were cooled at room temperature for two hours. The wax was peeled off with a stripper from TOKO. Afterwards the sanding structure was brushed out with a TOKO structure brush.

The FX SmartBase NANO - flooring and the NANO B were not waxed.

The pads were mounted on the slide with double sided tape and screw connections.

Then the carriage was weighed with the mounted pad.
The scale used was a gram-precise precision balance from Soehnle Model 8048 cyber.

Then the tub on the floor of artificial grass for better adhesion of the snow was filled with snow and peeled off with a ruler, so that a flat surface was created. Before each run, the test track was re-filled with snow and pulled off.

Thereafter, the carriage was attached to the guide and passed without contact with the ground to the magnet.

The magnet was triggered and the measurements at the light barriers were made.

There were ten runs per covering and the resulting times of all ten runs were averaged.

Then the averaged times were compared and the average speeds were calculated.

Results:

All sledges with mounted pad had the same weight, which was 339 g. The inclination angle α was 15 ° in all tests, which corresponds to a gradient of 25.88%.

1st test series warm and wet snow (snow temperature: -2 ° C, air temperature: + 2 ° C

• v : Mittlere Geschwindigkeit
• x : Strecke
• t : für x benötigte Zeit

ergibt sich:

• FX SmartBase NANO: v = 0,932 m/s
• FX SmartBase NANO B: v = 0,899 m/s
• P-Tex+EC1 : v = 0,767 m/s

FX Smartbase NANO Measurement t [sec / 100] x [cm] Mean L1 26.8 5.5 Mean L2 81.9 55.5 Mean L3 113.2 105.5 FX Smartbase NANO B Measurement t [sec / 100] x [cm] Mean L1 27.2 5.5 Mean L2 82.3 55.5 Mean L3 117.3 105.5 P - Tex + EC1 Measurement t [sec / 100] x [cm] Mean L1 39.8 5.5 Mean L2 102.1 55.5 Mean L3 137.5 105.5 Speed: v = x / t With:

• v: Average speed
• x: route
• t: time required for x

surrendered:

• FX SmartBase NANO: v = 0.932 m / s
• FX SmartBase NANO B: v = 0.899 m / s
• P-Tex + EC1: v = 0.767 m / s

Thus, the FX SmartBase NANO is 17.7% faster and the FX SmartBase NANO B is 14.7% faster on a 105.5 cm approach distance. The result is in FIG. 3 shown.

2. Test series cold and dry snow (snow temperature: -6 ° C, air temperature: -4 ° C

• v : Mittlere Geschwindigkeit
• x : Strecke
• t : für x benötigte Zeit

ergibt sich:

• FX SmartBase NANO : v = 0,890 m/s
• FX SmartBase NANO B: v = 0,875 m/s
• P-Tex+EC2 : v = 0,826 m/s

FX Smartbase NANO Measurement t [sec / 100] x [cm] Mean L1 26.1 5.5 Mean L2 82.7 55.5 Mean L3 118.5 105.5 FX Smartbase NANO B Measurement t [sec / 100] x [cm] Mean L1 26.9 5.5 Mean L2 83.4 55.5 Mean L3 120.5 105.5 P-Tex + EC2 Measurement t [sec / 100] x [cm] Mean L1 26.8 5.5 Mean L2 87.1 55.5 Mean L3 127.7 105.5 Speed: v = x / t With:

• v: Average speed
• x: route
• t: time required for x

surrendered:

• FX SmartBase NANO: v = 0.890 m / s
• FX SmartBase NANO B: v = 0.875 m / s
• P-Tex + EC2: v = 0.826 m / s

Thus, the FX SmartBase NANO is 7.19% faster and the FX SmartBase NANO B is 5.6% faster on a 105.5 cm approach distance. The result is in FIG. 4 shown.

Claims (22)

1. Sliding coating for a winter sports equipment comprising a copolymer (I) having 10% or more of structural building blocks derived from propylene monomers, based on the total number of the structural building blocks of the copolymer (I), and having 1% or more of structural building blocks derived from another olefin, based on the total number of the structural building blocks of the copolymer (I), wherein the sliding coating does not have a copolymer, which comprises 50% or more of structural building blocks derived from ethylene monomers, based on the total number of the structural building blocks of the copolymer.
2. Sliding coating according to claim 1, characterized in that the sliding coating, besides the copolymer (I), does not have another copolymer, which contains structural building blocks derived from propylene.
3. Sliding coating according to claim 1, comprising a mixture of a copolymer (I) and a copolymer (II), wherein the copolymer (I) and the copolymer (II) are copolymers of propylene and of at least one further olefin, and the copolymer (I) is as defined in claim 1, and wherein the bending strength of the copolymer (I) is at least by 50 MPa higher than the bending strength of the copolymer (II), the Vicat softening temperature of the copolymer (I) is by at least 5°C higher than the Vicat softening temperature of the copolymer (II), and the Shore D hardness of the copolymer (I) is at least 5 units over the shore D hardness of the copolymer (II).
4. Sliding coating according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the copolymer (I) has a bending strength in the range of 200 MPa - 3000 MPa, a Vicat softening temperature VST/A/50 in the range of 80°C to 250°C and a Shore D hardness in the range of 50 to 90, and the copolymer (II), if present, is a copolymer of propylene and at least one further olefin; which has a bending strength in the range of 1 MPa to 500 MPa, a Vicat softening temperature VST/A/50 in the range of 1°C to 80°C and a Shore D hardness in the range of 1 to 50.
5. Sliding coating according to claim 4, characterized in that the copolymer (I) has a bending strength in the range of 500 MPa to 3000 MPa.
6. Sliding coating according to any one of claims 3 to 5, characterized in that the copolymer (II) is present in an amount from 5 to 50% by weight based on the total weight of copolymer (I) and copolymer (II).
7. Sliding coating according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the sliding coating further includes one or more lubricants.
8. Sliding coating according to claim 7, characterized in that the lubricant or the lubricants, respectively, is/are contained in an amount of 0.5 to 30% by weight based on the total weight of the copolymer (I) or the mixture of copolymer (I) and copolymer (II), respectively, if applicable.
9. Sliding coating according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that a lubricant is included, which is selected from a high-temperature stable primary or secondary fatty acid, a carboxylic acid ester and mixtures thereof.
10. Sliding coating according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the sliding coating further includes a nucleation agent.
11. Sliding coating according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the sliding coating additionally contains one or more further additives, selected from antistatic additives, additives for improving the hydrophobic properties, additives for improving the weather resistance, additives for improving the scratch resistance and pigments.
12. Sliding coating according to claim 11, characterized in that the mixture contains a silicon compound and/or maleic anhydride.
13. Sliding coating according to any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that the copolymer (I) is a propylene / ethylene copolymer or an EPDM terpolymer.
14. Sliding coating according to claim 13, characterized in that the copolymer (I) is a propylene / ethylene copolymer with 70 to 99% of structural building blocks derived from propylene monomers, and with 1 to 30% of structural building blocks derived from ethylene monomers, each based on the total number of the structural building blocks.
15. Sliding coating according to any one of claims 3 to 14, characterized in that the copolymer (II) is a copolymer of propylene and a higher olefin with 4 to 10 carbon atoms or a terpolymer of propylene, ethylene and an olefin with 4 to 10 carbon atoms.
16. Sliding coating according to claim 15, characterized in that the olefin with 4 to 10 carbon atoms is octene.
17. Sliding coating according to any one of claims 3 to 16, characterized in that the bending strength of the copolymer (I) is at least 500 MPa higher than the bending strength of the copolymer (II), the Vicat softening temperature of the copolymer (I) is at least 50°C higher than the Vicat softening temperature of the copolymer (II), and the Shore D hardness of the copolymer (I) is at least 20 units higher than the Shore D hardness of the copolymer (II).
18. Sliding coating according to any one of claims 1 to 17, characterized in that the copolymer (I) has a bending strength in the range of 800 to 2000 MPa, a Vicat softening temperature VST/A/50 in the range of 100°C to 200°C and a Shore D hardness in the range of 55 to 80, and the copolymer (II), if present, has a bending strength in the range of 10 MPa to 200 MPa, a Vicat softening temperature VST/A/50 in the range of 30°C to 70°C and a Shore D hardness in the range of 20 to 40.
19. Sliding coating according to any one of claims 1 to 18, characterized in that it has a surface structure, which has been applied before the molecular freezing point.
20. Method for producing a sliding coating according to any one of claims 1 to 19, characterized in that a mixture of copolymer (I), optionally copolymer (II) and optionally further ingredients, as defined in any one of claims 1 to 17, is extruded to a film with a flat sheet extrusion method, onto which a surface structure is optionally subsequently applied before the molecular freezing point.
21. Winter sports equipment, characterized in that it has a sliding coating according to any one of claims 1 to 19.
22. Winter sports equipment according to claim 21, characterized in that it is a ski or a snowboard.

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