Behind the tire: Company presents new developments in experimental energy efficient and Neodymium rubber grades

HORGEN, Switzerland--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Trinseo (NYSE: TSE), the global materials solution provider and manufacturer of plastics, latex binder and synthetic rubber, will be attending the Tire Technology Expo, Europe's leading international Tire Design and Tire Manufacturing Exhibition and Conference. Exhibition visitors will receive an update on Trinseo’s wide range of standard and advanced synthetic rubber solutions and they will also be able to listen to two of Trinseo’s key R&D Leaders.

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Trinseo Synthetic Rubber provides an excellent balance between wet grip, low rolling resistance, and abrasion resistance for increased fuel savings and meeting stringent safety requirements while also providing precision and control in a variety of weather and surface conditions.(Photo: Business Wire)

As a global leader in synthetic rubber, Trinseo’s R&D experts are the driving force behind the company’s product portfolio. Trinseo’s R&D Experts, Dr. Sven Thiele and Dr. Malte Wohlfahrt, will both take to the stage to present recent findings in the development of functionalized synthetic rubber and high-cis polybutadiene rubber as part of the official conference program.

R&D for better, safer tires

“Rolling resistance, wet and dry grip, improved abrasion resistance, and good handling are among the key properties consumers are looking for in a good tire. Through non-stop research and development efforts Trinseo continuously enhances its next generation synthetic rubber portfolio on a permanent basis. This helps our customers meet and exceed these expectations,” said Sandra Hoffman, Global R&D Director, Synthetic Rubber at Trinseo.

Promising experimental grades for CO₂ emission reduction

Challenging CO₂ emission targets will be enforced at the end of this decade for passenger cars and light trucks. In addition, energy efficiency requirements are proposed or discussed for heavy trucks as well. This leads to a strong demand of energy efficient vehicle components, including tires, and Trinseo has been supplying top range compounds for this already.

“I will be talking about new polymer solutions Trinseo has developed for energy-efficient summer and winter tires that are now available as experimental grades,” adds Dr. Sven Thiele, R&D leader process & product development anionic/synthetic rubber, Trinseo Deutschland GmbH. “Typically high-performance functionalized S-SBR grades are difficult to process. Therefore, we developed an alternative highly functionalized clear (oil-free) S-SBR grade, which indicates good extrusion characteristics and relatively low polymer-silica formulation viscosity. As the new Trinseo experimental grades also indicate good wear characteristics, consumers have expectedly a long-term benefit from corresponding tire families.”

Dr. Sven Thiele’s full presentation can be attended on Tuesday, February 14, at 14:50.

Development of high-cis polybutadiene rubber grades

Neodymium-Butadiene Rubber (Nd-BR) is a high-performance technology complementary to S-SBR that Trinseo is developing to address current market needs. Dr. Malte Wohlfahrt, leader ESBR/BR synthetic rubber R&D, Trinseo Deutschland GmbH, is spearheading Trinseo’s research on the potential implementation of Nd-BR rubber grades.

“CO₂ emissions and fuel efficiency are two sides of the same coin, and demand for materials supporting fuel efficiency is growing. We believe that Nd-BR has an important role to play in this,” explains Dr. Wohlfahrt. “I’m very excited to present the findings of our research on the properties of some of our new Nd-BR grades at the Tire Technology Expo. We’ve tested these for processability as well as performance and I can already say that these results are very promising indeed.”

Dr. Malte Wohlfahrt’s full presentation can be attended on Wednesday, February 15, at 14:25.

Access the complete conference program at: http://tiretechnology-expo.com/conf_overview.php

About Trinseo

Trinseo (NYSE: TSE) is a global materials solutions provider and manufacturer of plastics, latex binders, and synthetic rubber. We are focused on delivering innovative and sustainable solution to help our customers create products that touch lives every day — products that are intrinsic to how we live our lives — across a wide range of end-markets, including automotive, consumer electronics, appliances, medical devices, lighting, electrical, carpet, paper and board, building and construction, and tires. Trinseo had approximately $4.0 billion in revenue in 2015, with 15 manufacturing sites around the world, and more than 2,200 employees. For more information, visit www.trinseo.com.

Forward Looking Statements

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Source: Trinseo