New Degussa Tire Component Helps Motorists Burn Less Fuel 

Environment Also Benefits From Lower CO2, VOC Emissions 

PARSIPPANY, N. J., August 10, 2007 – A new silane from Degussa, the world’s leading specialty chemical company, could curb automotive carbon dioxide emissions and help motorists save money.  

Leading global tire manufacturers such as Goodyear are already testing the new Degussa silane in high performance tires that utilize silica technology. Experts predict that the first tires containing VP Si 363 will soon enter the U. S. marketplace.  

The economic advantages of the tires containing VP Si 363 are impressive said Thomas Hermann, head of Degussa’s Advanced Fillers & Pigments Business Unit, which produces the new silane VP Si 363. “Based on 20,000 miles driven per year, the money spent on a new set of tires can be recovered within 12 months,” he said.  

Degussa’s VP Si 363 reduces the rolling resistance of tires – the force required to move a vehicle over the road. Scientists at Degussa – a wholly owned subsidiary of the Essen, Germany-based RAG Group – say the new product could improve fuel consumption by 2-3%, while retaining all other tire properties such as wet grip and mileage.  

Bernhard Schwaiger, head of Degussa’s Advanced Fillers Technical Service department, stressed the ecological benefits of the new silane. “In contrast to silanes used in the past, volatile organic compounds (VOC) emissions from the tire manufacturing process using VP Si 363 are reduced by up to 80%,” he said. “Also, the reduced fuel consumption results in less carbon dioxide emissions, a major contributor to the global warming.”  

Tires normally contain about 30% reinforcing filler, which gives the rubber compounds desirable properties such as grip, abrasion resistance, tear and cut resistance. For decades, these properties were achieved by using carbon black as reinforcing filler. With the introduction of silica in combination with carbon black, it was possible to achieve a significant increase in tire performance.  

Due to the chemically different nature of rubber and silica, both components can’t be bonded together in a rubber compound. Instead, bifunctional organic silicon compounds (organo silanes) must be used to chemically bond the two substances. The successful combination of silica and organo silanes as a reinforcing filler system is known as the silica technology in tires.  

“This silica technology was originally developed by Degussa and then brought to market by leading tire manufacturers,” said Dr. Hans-Detlef Luginsland, Director Strategic Marketing Rubber Silicas and Rubber Silanes. “The tread compounds of tires containing silica as the main active reinforcing agent, not only improve the wet traction, but also the fuel efficiency compared to the ‘classical’ tires using carbon black as a single filler.”  

Tires with the silica technology already are available in the US from several tire producers including Energy tires from Michelin and the Assurance line from Goodyear.

Degussa: Creating Essentials™
Degussa Corporation is part of Degussa GmbH – a wholly owned subsidiary of the RAG Group. Degussa GmbH is the global market leader in specialty chemicals. Its business is creating essentials: innovative products and system solutions that make indispensable contributions to its customers’ success. In fiscal 2006 around 36,000 employees worldwide generated sales of 10.9 billion euros and operating profits (EBIT) of more than 870 million euros.