A new special grade Epoxide Natural Rubber (ENR) developed by Apollo Tyres and Rubber Research Institute of India (RRI) has resulted in a new rubber compound for tyres, which has been patented by the government of India through patent No. 287630.

This special grade ENR will replace the expensive synthetic S-SBR. The R&D Team at Apollo Tyres, led by Dr Arup Kumar Chandra, along with RRI, developed the special grade of Epoxide Natural Rubber. ENR is capable of substituting expensive Solution- polymerised Styrene Butadiene Rubber (S-SBR) that is widely used for high-performance car tyres, including winter tyres. It could even be a sustainable solution to the company’s future high-performance tyres.

Lauding the efforts of Dr Chandra, and the team involved in this innovation, Daniele Lorenzetti, CTO, Apollo Tyres, said, “This innovation is a result of our commitment to replace synthetic materials with green and more environment-friendly naturally occurring materials. I congratulate the entire team involved in this, including the scientists from Rubber Research Institute of India, for this invention.”

According to Apollo Tyres, its increased focus on R&D, along with the need to develop environment-friendly raw materials, led to the company collaborating with Rubber Research Institute of India to develop such a special grade material.

As present, Indian tyre manufacturers rely on imported S-SBR for their high-performance car tyres. This product is not only expensive but is also not environment friendly.