The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project 'Non-Silane Coupling Agents' rests on the environmental advantage of a new technology platform of coupling agents with potential performance advantages for tire applications. The global tire and rubber companies consume $325 million in silane coupling agents each year. About half of the weight of the silane coupling agents (i.e., ~10 kTon or ~1-5% by weight of the tire) is converted to ethanol and, if not captured, released into the atmosphere as a volatile organic compound (VOC). By replacing the silane moiety in the conventional silane coupling agents with a catechol functional group, the non-silane coupling (NSC) technology completely eliminates the VOC generated during tire manufacture. If other industrial sectors that currently use silanes also adopt the catechol-based technology, ~50 kTon of annual VOC emission will be eliminated. The NSC technology introduces a disruptive replacement for the mature silane-based coupling technology, whose intellectual properties have long expired and whose manufacture is exclusively based in Asia. The NSC technology will also level the playingfield for US rubber and tire manufacturers against their competitors in developing countries, where the environmental regulations are relaxed.
This I-Corps project 'Non-Silane Coupling Agents' is a clean intellectual departure from the current silane-based technology, taking advantage of the exceptional ability of the catechol motif to form chelation on the surface of silica. The approach is fundamentally novel. The technology is the outcome of a research program sponsored by the NSF I/UCRC Center of Tire Research. The activities encompassed by the I-Corps Teams program will allow us the deep dive necessary to truly understand the customer opportunity, tailor the novel disruptive technology to meet these needs at an early R&D stage and enhances the probability of success. The R&D and business team bring together extensive experience working in the areas of rubber chemistry, technology, marketing, and business management.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
