Bridgestone has announced that it has received a grant from the United States Department of Energy (DOE) to design, build, and operate a pilot plant for the production of butadiene from ethanol for more sustainable tires.
This project will assess the economic viability and carbon footprint of this innovative and sustainable process.
Project Objective
The project, in collaboration with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), aims to replace fossil fuel-derived butadiene with ethanol-derived butadiene, thus reducing the carbon footprint. Bridgestone will use the produced butadiene to explore its use in the production of more sustainable tires.
“Projects like this will contribute to the advancement of science and the technologies necessary for the industry to be more sustainable, placing our engineers and scientists at the forefront of a potential revolution in how tire manufacturers obtain butadiene in a more environmentally friendly way,” said Dr. Mark Smale, executive director of Polymer Science at Bridgestone.
More Sustainable Tires
The process will use an innovative and patented catalyst system developed by PNNL and perfected with Bridgestone. This approach could revolutionize butadiene production, making it more sustainable and cost-effective.
Impact and Bridgestone’s Commitment
This project, which will last at least three years, is part of Bridgestone’s efforts to lead sustainable mobility solutions. In this way, they seek to fulfill their commitment to using 100% sustainable raw materials in their tires by 2050.
Have you already visited our YouTube channel? Subscribe now!
