Two papers delivered at the end of the tire-based segment of the International Rubber Research and Development Board’s International Rubber Conference 2013 focused on rubber technologies helping to create the next wave of green tires. 
Dr. Stuart Cook, the director of research at TAARC, gave a brief history of the research center’s development of Ekoprena, starting with Michelin’s identification of the first “green tire” back in 1992, while Sumitomo’s Kozaburo Nakaseko indicated the corporation’s intention to launch a "fossil fuel free tire" in the second half of 2013, mixing "epoxidized natural rubber" with a more highly refined rubber product.
First, Cook explained the development of ‘green tire’ technology, which at first merely referred to the fuel saving properties of synthetic rubber tread compounds with precipitated silica-filler and silane coupling agent replacing carbon black fillers. As the concept of green tires grew to take into account sustainable, non-fossil fuel resources, and lately tire label ratings, natural rubber latex was chemically modified, making the use of epoxidized natural rubber (ENR) to reduce rolling resistance while improving wet grip became possible, and Ekoprena was anointed as the future of green tires, reducing the impact of the tread on fuel consumption by up to 30% on truck radials and more modest gains in passenger radials.
Sumitomo Rubber Industries senior executive officer Nakaseko, to some extent inspired by the Japanese tire labeling regulations, is using ENR technologies to produce a 100% fossil fuel-free tire in the second half of 2013.
Also new in this tire will be the use of “ultra-pure natural rubber technology,” which is the manufacturer’s solution to increasing longevity, and therefore reducing raw materials consumption. The natural rubber is highly purified to enhance the interaction of the natural rubber and carbon black, which helps to increase tread life.
Other tire-based papers given during the IRC included LMC International head of rubber and tire research Robert Simmons, who summarized the outlook for the global tire industry; Energy Solutions senior project manager Ed Pike, who explained the potential benefits of low rolling resistance tires; Dr. Philippe Jost, silica R&D director at Solvay, talking about the impact of silica on natural rubber; and finally tire industry consultant Dr. Roger Williams, who presented a provocative paper that dared to ask the question of whether the pneumatic tire would survive.
Using the opportunity to think outside the box a little, Williams asked fundamental questions about the amount of natural resources used in the making of the products and their energy efficiency, while hunting for potential replacement inventions. For his money, natural rubber “must fight for its future in the face of technologies.” (Tyres & Accessories)
