Goodyear And Visolis Join Hands To Produce Isoprene Using Upcycled Materials
Published On 31-Oct-2023
Under this new partnership, Goodyear will have access to the patented technology of Visolis for making isoprene from non-edible biomass.
- Goodyear-Visolis partnership has been supported by Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) through a grant issued to Visolis.
- This new partnership will accelerate Goodyear’s plans to sell tyres with 70 per cent sustainable materials in 2024.
- Visolis made a carbon footprint analysis for this patent to explore the reduction potential of this process.
In a recent turn of events towards attaining sustainability, two major brands – Goodyear and Visolis – have entered into a partnership for producing Isoprene by upcycling biobased materials. This is the first one-of-a-kind partnership between a tyre manufacturing company like Goodyear and a sustainable technology company like Visolis for making a vital component for tyre manufacturing using upcycled materials.
The new partnership between Goodyear and Visolis has also been supported by Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) through a grant issued to the latter in early 2023.
What Is Isoprene?
One of the most crucial components used in the production of synthetic rubber, isoprene is a hydrocarbon generated from the by-products obtained in the production of refined crude oil. In chemical terminology, isoprene is converted into long chains of carbon using a catalyst in a chemical reaction. In this, polyisoprene is obtained as a product which is eventually used as a raw material in the manufacturing process of tyres.
How Does The Partnership Of Goodyear and Visolis Will Work?
Under this partnership, Goodyear will have access to the technology patented by Visolis for producing high-quality isoprene from non-edible biomass and agricultural materials, commonly known as lignocellulosic feedstocks. While achieving this patent, Visolis made a carbon footprint analysis which helped it to explore the reduction potential of this process, thus making the process more sustainable.
What Goodyear and Visolis Have To Say About Their Partnership?
Dr Deepak Dugar, CEO of Visolis, is elated with this new partnership with Goodyear, under which his company will be leveraging its technology to produce isoprene from waste materials. Marking it as the commitment of Visolis to following sustainable practices and development of advanced materials, Chris Helsel, Senior Vice President of Global Operations and Chief Technology Officer at Goodyear, said that this partnership with Visolis will help Goodyear to achieve net-zero value chain emissions by 2050.
Helse also added that this new partnership will help Goodyear to learn and innovate on its own for a more sustainable future.
This new association with Visolis is one step further in Goodyear’s focus on using sustainable materials for manufacturing its products. Earlier this year, Goodyear had launched a 90 per cent sustainable-material demonstration tyre. The tyre maker now intends to manufacture and sell tyres with 70 per cent sustainable materials in 2024.