Tire Rubber Composition Balancing Grip, Strength, and Cut Resistance

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Solution Overview

Problem

Tire compositions containing only polybutadiene rubber suffer from continuous damage spread, poor grip performance, and low strength, necessitating improvements in abrasion resistance and grip on various road conditions.

Innovation Solution

A tire rubber composition comprising polybutadiene rubber and at least one of styrene-butadiene rubber or isoprene-based rubber, with polybutadiene rubber constituting 65% by mass or more, enhancing mechanical strength and grip performance across different temperature conditions.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Strength

If a tire component contains only polybutadiene rubber (single morphological system), then it can be produced using natural materials and has excellent abrasion resistance and tear resistance, but it suffers from continuous spread of minor damage, poor grip performance, and low strength

Engineering Contradiction:
Improverubber strengthVSAvoidresistance to continuous damage spread
Core Design Contradiction:
StrengthVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent uses a composite rubber system combining polybutadiene rubber with at least one other rubber type (styrene-butadiene rubber, isoprene-based rubber, or natural rubber) to create a multi-morphological system. This composite approach maintains the excellent abrasion resistance and tear resistance of polybutadiene while adding the strength and damage resistance properties of the complementary rubber materials, thereby resolving the contradiction between strength and reliability against continuous damage.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #40Composite materials

2Reliability

If a tire component contains only polybutadiene rubber, then it has excellent abrasion resistance and tear resistance, but it has poor grip performance on various road conditions

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveabrasion resistanceVSAvoidgrip performance
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent combines polybutadiene rubber with other rubber types (styrene-butadiene rubber, isoprene-based rubber, or natural rubber) to create a composite system that maintains the abrasion resistance of polybutadiene while adding the grip performance characteristics of the complementary materials, particularly natural rubber which provides excellent grip on snow- and ice-free low temperature roads and high temperature roads.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #40Composite materials

3Ease of manufacture

If polybutadiene rubber is used in a single morphological system, then production can use natural materials, but the tire component has low strength and poor damage resistance

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveproduction using natural materialsVSAvoidtire component strength
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of manufactureVSStrength

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a composite rubber system that includes natural rubber along with polybutadiene rubber and other rubber types. This approach maintains the natural material production advantage while significantly improving the strength and damage resistance through the synergistic effects of the multi-rubber composition.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #40Composite materials

Data Source

PatentEP4578908A1Tire rubber composition and tire
Publication Date: 2025.07.02 SUMITOMO RUBBER INDUSTRIES LTD
  • EP4578908A1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4578908A1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP4578908A1 patent drawing

AI summary

Provided is a tire rubber composition and a tire each having excellent performances including rubber strength, chip and cut resistance, fuel economy, high-speed performance (grip performance) on snow- and ice-free low temperature roads, and grip performance on high temperature roads while using a large amount of polybutadiene rubber. The tire rubber composition contains polybutadiene rubber and at least one of styrene-butadiene rubber or an isoprene-based rubber, the tire rubber composition containing the polybutadiene rubber in an amount of 65% by mass or more based on 100% by mass of a rubber component therein.