In rubber compounding, silica is used as a filler for manufacturing high wet grip and low rolling resistance tires. This silica is polar material and general-purpose rubbers are non-polar in nature, meaning that it cannot disperse and interact easily in the rubber matrix and the tire desired performance is not met. To achieve good dispersion and reinforcement, silane coupling agents are used along with silica. Balkrishna Industries has studied the performance impact of various types of silane in tire silica-based tread compounds. The presentation will cover the processing behavior, dispersion, physical properties and laboratory predictors for wet grip and rolling resistance.

• Silica-silane technolgy
• The function of silane
• The impact of various types of silane on tire rolling resistance
• The impact of various types of silane on tire wet grip properties
• Dispersion of silica while using silane