Falken Rolling Out New Commercial Tires at GATS

Sumitomo Rubber Industries’ Falken brand will showcase four new commercial tires at the 2016 Great American Trucking Show (GATS) in Dallas, Aug. 25-27.

“Falken is excited to debut our newest additions to our commercial truck tire lines at the Great American Trucking Show,” said Rick Brennan, vice president of marketing for the company. “Showcasing our latest technology and how it can reduce operating costs is the key to our display this year.”

At the Falken exhibit (#19105), the tiremaker will debut the RI130 Ecorun, RI150 Ecorun, BI830 Ecorun and BI850. According to Falken, the new tires were developed with a focus on longer tread life, even wear, greater durability and low rolling resistance.

– The RI130 Ecorun steer position tire is designed for line haul routes and on-highway driving and features an all-new tread compound to reduce irregular wear without compromising fuel efficiency, Falken said.

– The RI150 Ecorun all-position tire is designed for regional haul applications and includes stone drilling prevention features. Additionally, the tire is engineered to maximize mileage and is retreadable.

– The BI830 Ecorun is a robust closed-shoulder line haul drive tire that features 30/32” of tread depth for long mileage, even wear and highway handling, Falken said. For wet weather performance, the tire also features a high traction block tread design, the tiremaker adds.

– The BI850 drive position tire is designed for regional service applications and features an aggressive open-shoulder tread design for high traction in various conditions, Falken said.

GATS will be held at the The Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas, Aug. 25-27.

Toyo Tire announced the development of catalysts that convert carbon dioxide into butadiene in high yield in collaboration with the University of Toyama. The company said it and the university successfully synthesized butadiene rubber, a key raw materials for tires, using CO2.

The composition ratios of raw materials used for automobile tires varies by category, and petroleum-derived synthetic rubbers including butadiene units (styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) and butadiene rubber (BR)) account for approximately 30% of raw material overall. This being the case, the tire industry has been activating the research of synthesis of butadiene rubber derived from naturally alternative materials (resources) other than petroleum for practical application.