AdminThe Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company unveiled a demonstration tyre comprised of 90% sustainable materials. This demonstration tyre has passed all applicable regulatory testing as well as Goodyear’s internal testing.
This demonstration tyre also tested to have lower rolling resistance when compared to the reference tyre, made with traditional materials. Lower rolling resistance means this demonstration tyre has the potential to offer better fuel savings and carbon footprint reduction.
In addition, after announcing the capability to demonstrate a 70% sustainable-material tyre in January 2022, Goodyear, working with its supply base, plans to sell a tyre with up to 70% sustainable-material content in 2023. Consumers interested in purchasing this tyre can register for updates at Goodyear.com/SustainableMaterialTire.
“The past year was a pivotal one toward achieving this goal. We researched new technologies, identified opportunities for further collaboration and utilised our team’s tenacity to not only demonstrate our capabilities to produce a 90% sustainable-material tyre, but to also produce a tyre with up to 70% sustainable-material content this year. Our team continues to showcase its innovation and commitment to building a better future.” said Chris Helsel, senior vice president, Global Operations and Chief Technology Officer.
Bringing a 90% sustainable-material tyre to market will require further collaboration with the company’s supply base to identify the scale necessary for these innovative materials to produce that specific tyre at high volumes.
“We continue to make progress toward our goal of introducing the first 100% sustainable-material tyre in the industry by 2030,” Chris Helsel added.
17 ingredients across 12 different tyre components
This 90% sustainable-material demonstration tyre includes 17 featured ingredients across 12 different components. Below are some of the ingredients included in the tyre.
Carbon black
Carbon black is included in tyres for compound reinforcement and to help increase their life. It has traditionally been made by burning various types of petroleum products. Goodyear’s 90% sustainable-material demonstration tyre features four different types of carbon black that are produced from methane, carbon dioxide, plant-based oil and end-of-life tyre pyrolysis oil feedstocks. These carbon black technologies target reduced carbon emissions, circularity and the use of bio-based carbons, while still delivering on performance.
Soybean oil
The use of soybean oil in this demonstration tyre helps keep the tyre’s rubber compound pliable in changing temperatures. Soybean oil is a bio-based resource that helps to reduce Goodyear’s use of petroleum-based products. While nearly 100% of soy protein is used in food/animal feed applications, a significant surplus of oil is left over and available for use in industrial applications.
RHA silica
Silica is an ingredient often used in tyres to help improve grip and reduce fuel consumption. This demonstration tyre includes a high-quality silica produced from rice husk waste residue (RHA silica), a byproduct of rice processing that is often discarded and put into landfills.
Polyester
Polyester is recycled from post-consumer bottles by reverting the polyester into base chemicals and reforming them into technical grade polyester used in tyre cords.
Pine tree resins
Resins are used to help improve and enhance tyre traction performance. In this demonstration tyre, traditional petroleum-based resins are replaced with bio-renewable pine tree resins.
Polymers
ISCC certified mass balance polymers from bio- and bio-circular feedstock are also included in this tyre.
The shift to sustainable materials is evident in some of Goodyear’s current product lines. Today, eight product lines, and some racing tyres, include soybean oil.
In addition, Goodyear has more than doubled its use of RHA silica in its product lines since 2018. With the introduction of a tyre with up to 70% sustainable-material content, Goodyear is demonstrating tangible commitment with in-market solutions to building a better future.
