SEEKING SELF-SEALING AND PUNCTURE-PROOF SOLUTION

Transcription

1 SEEKING SELF-SEALING AND PUNCTURE-PROOF SOLUTION FOR PASSENGER TYRES Type of solution sought: A Material A Technology A Partner A Manufacturing Process Description of Desired Solution: A SpecialChem client is looking for a solution to durably plug all punctures in the tyre tread and/or shoulder area of passenger tyres caused by nails, screws and other sharp objects. The desired solution, preventive or curative, may consist of layers made of self-healing and/or puncture-proof materials to fix the flat real time or to prevent the puncture from happening. Background: Tyres carry tremendous amount of dynamic and sustained loads several times their weight and yet produce comfortable ride quality primarily due to the air inside the cavity. Air imparts the necessary pneumatic stiffness to the tyre and plays an important role in the ability of the tyre-wheel assembly to carry the loads. Unfortunately, punctures do occur in both developed and emerging nations due to sharp objects on the roads and may cause slow leaks and flats that may impair mobility. Our client is looking for elegant and costeffective solutions to actively seal/prevent punctures from sharp objects. There are two types of solutions currently on the market depending on when the sealing layer is applied during the tyre manufacture process Pre Cure and Post Cure. The technology consists of a thin (3 to 5 mm) viscous layer (rubber-polymer based) applied to the tyre tread during tyre building or after tyre cure. When a tread puncture occurs, the air escaping the tyre literally pushes the polymers, which simply plugs the puncture hole. There 1/5

2 is no evidence of further cross-linking of polymers with tyre rubber. Examples of commercial pre-cure self-sealing solutions include Pirelli SealInside and Goodyear DuraSeal, while Continental ContiSeal involves a post-cure solution. Supplier / partner opportunity: three business models are possible: 1. supply of a mature puncture self-repair or sealing solution 2. supply of puncture sealant plus operating its fitting to new tyres (volume: 500k / year over 4 years) 3. development partner for a next generation solution. Desired solution is not limited to repair only. We encourage any solutions that may prevent the punctures. Detailed Solution Description: The SpecialChem client is seeking a self-sealing and puncture-proof solution that would be deployed in the cavity of vulcanized (post-cure) or non-vulcanized (pre-cure) tyre. To be investigated by the SpecialChem client, the solution shall: Not affect tyre uniformity, balance nor steering or driving comfort Work at high vehicle speed w/o affecting tyre integrity. Be compatible with the tyre materials and with standard tyre manufacturing process Work for the tyre life (ca km and 4 years) and not undergo any environmentally-driven ageing nor degradation (high/low temperatures, high moisture). Not affecting end-of-life tyre recycling: self-sealing solution may need to be removable for end-of-life tyre recycling unless thermally degradable during tyre incineration. Be cost and effort effective (easily applied to tyres through the automatable process with a building cycle no longer than 15 seconds per tyre for pre-cure solution and 30 seconds to a minute for post-cure. Cost of puncture-repairing material and its application to the tyre shall not exceed 10% of the tyre price. Demonstrate the ability of sealing in -35C / +100C temperature range over a full tyre life of ca. 4 years. Furthermore, the sealing performance of the proposed solution shall not be degraded by multiple, environmental temperature cycling. 2/5

3 Critical requirements: Right combination of density / Tg / viscosity of the proposed solution is a key-success factor: o Glass transition point (Tg): < -50C o Thermal decomposition > 190C o Low flammability and self-ignition > 190C Non-infringement of third-party IP rights must be demonstrated. Possible Routes To Investigate (not limited to): Rubber / elastomer-based solution Polyurethane-based solution Thermoplastic resin-based solution Multi-layered expandable films Self-healing polymers deployed in the tyre cavity as most inner layer Solutions that are not of interest: Low viscosity tyre sealants injected to mounted and inflated tyres through the valve stem are not of interest Self-healing rubber tyre tread compounds are not of interest as they may introduce trade-offs to key tyre performance attributes such as grip and rolling resistance. Sealant solutions requiring organic solvents are not of interest Sealants leaking out of the tyre cavity during the warehouse storage or truck shipment to the end-customer premises are not of interest Sealants containing harmful components for operators and/or environment are not of interest. Sealant compositions not in line with REACH legislation are not of interest. Timeframe for adopting this solution? Maximum 12 months 3/5

4 Other comments / Important Considerations: - Mature technology or solution is in the scope of interest with readiness of commercial deployment within 12 months are preferred. - The proposed solution must be cost-effective and not increasing the tyre price by more than 10%. - In parallel, a supply of industrial, automated or semi-automated equipment for high throughput sealant installation in passenger tyres will be considered as advantage since the process needs to be automated and run by our business partner with a reasonably short application cycle per tyre. The supplier needs to be ISO900X certified, and ideally, certified with ISO TS16940 Types of outcome expected - Ready-to-be-used solutions - Proven concepts Type of business considered? - Buying the requested technology - Licensing the technology - Joint-venture Company Demographics Industry you are in (Chemical, Automotive, Consumer Goods ): Chemical & Automotive Annual Revenue: > 500 mln Euro Years in Business: Many years Headquarters Area: Global presence 4/5

5 How to respond to this RFP? You have 2 options for submitting a Proposal: On-line submission (fill out the on-line Proposal template and click on "Submit") Or download the Proposal Submission Template and send it back to sebastien.gourdon@specialchem.com Next Steps: All proposals will be gathered by SpecialChem and then forwarded to the seeker. The seeker, if interested by your Proposal, will contact you within one (1) month after submission deadline Try Open Innovation Now! To benefit from hundreds of thousands of business contacts in Chemicals & Materials, visit: Sébastien Gourdon Open Innovation Director sebastien.gourdon@specialchem.com /5