LONDON: Tyre manufacturers are under pressure to virtually reinvent the wheel as regulators focus on tyre pollution, which is expected to increase with the popularity of electric vehicles (EVs) and threatens to compromise those vehicles’ green credentials.
When tyres hit the road, tiny particles are abraded and released. This little-discussed type of pollution, which is caused by an estimated 2 billion tyres made globally each year, is becoming a bigger issue as EVs gain weight from their batteries.
Major manufacturers, including Bridgestone, Goodyear, Continental, and Michelin, are also attempting to fend off competition from cheaper rivals in China.
“It’s not quite a perfect storm,” said Gunnlaugur “G” Erlendsson, CEO of the UK-based business Enso, which has created more resilient tyres expressly for EVs and rents out tyres that it later collects to recycle. However, it’s close.
Tyre manufacturers are trying to get ahead of emissions rules and find alternatives.
Recent studies have revealed the toxicity of tyres, which typically have 200 components and compounds, many of which are generated from crude oil. While critics claim that tyres contain several hazardous and cancer-causing substances, there is only general agreement on one: 6PPD, an antioxidative and antiozonant found in all tyres that reduce cracking. The first state to require tyre manufacturers to provide evidence that they are looking for a replacement for 6PPD, a degraded form discovered in South China’s human urine, is expected to be California this year.
The European Union’s upcoming Euro 7 emission regulations will set new tyre standards.
