Goodyear to Increase Use of Soybean Oil in Tyres

US tyre and rubber company Goodyear plans to replace petroleum-derived oils with soybean oil in all its tyres by 2040 and increase its soybean oil consumption by 25% by 2020.  The company said that using green technology was more sustainable and could capture a growing section of consumers who factored environmental concerns into their buying decisions.  United Soybean Board (USB) director, Gregg Fujan, said the development was a win for manufacturers and consumers while providing another market opportunity for farmers.

 The company’s scientists, working with the USB, also discovered that soybean oil mixed more easily with rubber compounds and reduced energy consumption in the mixing process, improving manufacturing efficiency.  Currently, Goodyear had three tyre lines produced with soybean oil: the Assurance WeatherReady, Eagle Exhilarate, and Eagle Enforcer All-Weather.  Development of the Assurance WeatherReady range allowed for soybean oil to replace petroleum-derived oil in the tread compound, and reduced petroleum-based materials in the whole tyre by 60%, Tire Business reported.