Goodyear picks PPG silica for new SUV tire

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co, is using PPG Industries’ Agilon performance silica to increase the fuel efficiency of its tires, PPG announced 5 May .

Goodyear will first use the next-generation reinforcing filler in its Efficientgrip SUV tires debuting in Latin America this month, said the announcement.

The US tire company is also planning to incorporate Agilon into future high-value-added tire launches in other regions in 2015, the silica supplier added.

"Our customers around the world are demanding more fuel-efficient tires, but they want us to minimize the typical trade-offs," said David Zanzig, director of global materials science for Goodyear in a separate announcement.

"Our materials scientists worked in cross-functional teams and, together with tire design and construction engineers, they derived an integrated solution that optimises performance. This new silica plays a critical role in satisfying our customers' needs," he added.

Zanzig went on to say that Goodyear sourced its silica from various suppliers but stressed that "they each play an important part in our materials line-up as we strive to create more environmentally friendly tires."

Agilon is a chemically-modified precipitated silica that can replace traditional silica-silane in tire compounds, said Anup Jain, PPG vice president, speciality coatings and materials.

According to Jain, the product can improve vehicle fuel efficiency, tire traction and tread-wear by 5 to 10 percent.

In February, PPG announced capacity expansion at its Delfzijl, Netherlands, production facility, planned in large part to meet growing global demand for Agilon performance silica by Goodyear and other tire manufacturers.