Soy oil stretches rubber's capabilities

By using renewable soy oil as a 25 per cent replacement for petroleum oil, Ford researchers more than doubled rubber’s stretchability and reduced its environmental impact. Soy-based rubber parts such as radiator deflector shields, air baffles, cup-holder inserts and floor mats are under consideration for future Ford vehicle programmes.

’Soy-based rubber has win-win potential as it provides superior stretchability and serves as a renewable resource that helps reduce carbon dioxide emissions from raw materials,’ said Cynthia Flanigan, Ford technical leader in elastomeric polymers.

The scope of Ford’s recent rubber research, which was funded in part by grants from the US Soybean Board (USB), included the use of soy fillers (flour, meal) as well as soy oils.

Ford researchers found that soy fillers could provide an inexpensive and environmentally friendly partial replacement of carbon black, a petroleum-based material traditionally used to reinforce rubber. Used together, soy oil and soy fillers could replace up to 26 per cent of the petroleum-based content in automotive rubber applications.