Tyre maker uses silica with NR in tyre

By David Shaw, ERJ editor

Hamburg, Germany -- An un-named tyre maker is currently testing tyres using an NR tread compound with silica, to deliver low rolling resistance. The company is using a new silica/silane package developed jointly by Dow Corning and Rhodia.

It is just three months since the two materials suppliers announced their intention to cooperate to deliver a silica/silane package which works effectively with natural rubber.

In that time, the companies have moved from kg quantities to tonne quantities of the material and have begun presenting the system to tyre makers. The aim, said Dr Thierry Materne, Global industry director for additives at Dow Corning, is to work with each customer to develop a specific package of silicas and silanes which is optimised for the customer's mixing and production processes.

Ultimately, the material suppliers aim to sell the material into truck tyre applications, but they recognise that approvals will take some time. In the mean time, however, said Peter Browning, global business director for silica at Rhodia, there are other lower volume applications which can benefit from the new technology.

While the package suffers from the same processing characteristics as other silica/silane packages, such as out-gassing during the silanisation reaction, the potential benefits in truck tyres, said Browning, far outweigh any cost penalties that might be incurred.