2023
Soybean Oil as a Replacement for Petroleum-Based Oils in Tire Applications
Contributor/Checkoff:
Category:
Industrial
Keywords:
Industrial UsesOilTires
Parent Project:
This is the first year of this project.
Lead Principal Investigator:
Robert Woloszynek, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
Co-Principal Investigators:
Project Code:
23-102-D-D-1-A
Contributing Organization (Checkoff):
Institution Funded:
Brief Project Summary:
We look to extend our current project and continue our efforts to leverage the unique properties of soybean oil in additional tire components, applications and products to not only help deliver performance advantages that will make Goodyear products appealing to our customers, but to continue our journey toward fully replacing petroleum-based oils in our products by 2040.
Information And Results
Project Summary

Project Objectives

Project Deliverables

Progress Of Work

Final Project Results

Goodyear continued to make significant progress expanding the use of our soybean oil technology, and for the seventh year in a row, has commercialized at least one new tire product containing soybean oil. Our main deliverable for this project was to commercialize at least one additional new product in which soybean oil replaces petroleum-based oil. In mid-August, Goodyear announced the launch of the new Cooper Cobra Instinct all-season sport performance tire. This is the first Cooper-branded product in which the tread compound contains soybean oil. The soybean oil replaces a portion of the petroleum-based materials in the tire and helps the tread stay pliable and grip the road at lower temperatures. The Cooper Cobra Instinct is available in 25 sizes, from 17-20 inches. In January 2023, Goodyear presented a 90% sustainable material demonstration tire at the Consumer Electronics Show, in which multiple soybean oil technologies were included. Fundamental compound development activities for non-tread formulations remain ongoing, but we achieved a significant milestone in 2023 by technically releasing our first non-tread compound formulation which contains soybean oil. We plan to launch a tire before the end of 2023 containing up to 70% sustainable materials by weight, and soybean oil will be highlighted as one of those key raw materials. All of these activities have further increased Goodyear’s use of soybean oil, and we continue to progress toward our goal of fully replacing petroleum-based processing oils in our products by 2040.

Benefit To Soybean Farmers

Increased use of soybean oil in industrial applications

The United Soybean Research Retention policy will display final reports with the project once completed but working files will be purged after three years. And financial information after seven years. All pertinent information is in the final report or if you want more information, please contact the project lead at your state soybean organization or principal investigator listed on the project.