Lanxess Releases New Tyre Additive
Specialty chemicals group Lanxess has developed a new high-performance rubber additive. Known as Nanoprene, this material additive for tyre tread compound is reported to significantly reduce the rate of wear in a tyre. Lanxess adds that this reduction in wear achieved through the use of this additive does not in any way impact on rolling resistance or wet grip.
“Boosting tyre service life without losing other key tread properties was a major challenge for the rubber industry,” explains Nanoprene developer Professor Werner Obrecht, rubber expert at the Lanxess Technical Rubber Products (TRP) business unit. “Despite all the positive developments of the last 20 years, after travelling around 40,000 kilometres, the tread pattern is normally worn and new tyres are then needed. This is not only annoying for the customer, since the fine rubber particles created by the tyre wear ultimately end up in the environment.”