Development of tyre tread compounds for good wet-grip : effects of rubber type

Abstract

The present work reported the study of the effects of type of rubber on energy loss of tyre tread compounds for radial tyres which determines wet-grip properties of the tyres derived from them. The types of rubbers studied were solution SBR (S-SBR), emulsion SBR (E-SBR), functionalized S-SBR (FS-SBR), natural rubber (NR), functionalized NR (CNR), butadiene rubber (BR) and their selected blends.The wet-grip property was assessed by measuring tan δ at 0°C. It was found that FS-SBR gave tread compound with the best wet-grip property followed by S-SBR, CNR, E-SBR, NR and BR. Blends of SBR with lower ranking rubbers (CNR, NR and BR) also gave lower values of tan δ at 0°C or poorer wet-grip properties. The results can be explained by the viscoelastic properties of the rubbers and their interactions with silica.