LANXESS techology facilitales production of fuel-efficient tyres

摘要

Leading specialty chemicals company LANXESS has launched two new neo-dymium polybutadiene rubber grades (NdBR) -Buna CB PBR 4076 and PBR 4065 - for making particularly fuel-efficient tyres. Despite their high molar masses, both these valiants are exceptionally easy to process - without any compromises when it comes to their dynamic mechanical properties. "The higher a tyre rubber's molar mass, the belter the product's end properties normally are - rolling resistance, for instance." explains Dr. Heike Kloppenburg, an expert on tyres and synthetic rubber at LANXESS' site in Donna-gen, Germany. "However, high molar masses normally go hand in hand with high Mooney viscosities, which makes the rubber difficult to process," she says. Although it is possible to solve this problem by slowing down the extrusion process, reducing processing temperatures or adding processing aids, this increases production costs and can have a negative impact on the compound's end properties.