Special Report

Chemical Weekly October 27, 2009 183

S
tyrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) is
a random copolymer produced,
as the name suggests, from sty-
rene and butadiene.
SBR was the rst major synthetic
rubber (SR) to be produced commer-
cially. Early grades produced in Ger-
many by Buna S and in the United
States by Standard Oil Company/The
Rubber Reserve Company during the
Second World War were based on the
emulsion polymerization technology
developed by I.G. Farbenindustrie AG
of Germany.
During the 1960s, the rst solution
polymerized random SBR grades were
produced commercially by Firestone
and Phillips. The original aim was to
produce SBR with lower styrene con-
tent than achievable by emulsion poly-
merization to counteract the increase in
styrene prices.
SBR is the workhorse of the rub-
ber industry, even though some of its
properties do not match those of natu-
ral rubber (NR). What it lacks in elon-
gation, hot tear strength, hysteresis, re-
silience and tensile strength, it makes
up for in better processability, slightly
better heat aging and better abrasion
resistance than NR. Probably the most
important factors in the commercial
viability of SBR have been its wide
availability, low cost compared with
those of all other SRs, ability to accept
high ller levels, relatively stable price
compared with that of NR and overall
properties on a cost/performance ba-
sis.
Principal applications are in tyres
and tyre products, automotive parts and
mechanical rubber goods.
SBR technology developments have
continued even though the business
is mature. Developments are being
prompted by tyre producers that are
looking for elastomers with improved
performance characteristics. The exi-
bility of solution processes has enabled
producers to develop tailored SBR
grades, which improve the combination
of mechanical properties (e.g. traction
grip; handling ride, cornering
performance, performance at speed;
and rolling resistance) and processing
characteristics.
More recently, producers have fo-
cused on the capability to use additives
to vary the stereochemistry of the diene
polymerization and to control polymer
micro- and macro-structure to produce
solution SBR grades with optimum
properties.
Chemical structure and properties
The peculiar nature of the insertion
of butadiene on the growing chain, i.e.
the 1,4 and 1,2 additions, together with
the two possible 1,4 addition isomers,
cis and trans, suggests it would be more
appropriate to refer to SBR as a four-
monomer copolymer.
This remark acquires a particular
meaning if we consider the physical
and rheological characteristics of the
nished polymer. The balance between
the structural unit content of styrene,
1,4- and 1,2-butadiene along the chain
is the most important parameter affect-
ing the glass transition temperature (T
g
)
of the material. Most interestingly, the
concentration of 1,4 trans units has a
strong inuence on the strain-induced
crystallization of the rubber, which
means a reinforcing effect on the tensile
ultimate properties. Moreover, the rela-
tive concentration of 1,4 and 1,2 units
may inuence the thermal stability of
the polymer. The oxidative degradation
of the rubber starts from the addition of
oxygen on a double bond: if the double
bond is part of the main chain, as in the
case of 1,4 units, the reaction will lead
to a chain scission.
Types of SBR
There are two major types of SBR,
based on the manufacturing process
adopted:
Emulsion SBR (e-SBR); and
Solution SBR (s-SBR).
At the very beginning of their devel-
opment, s-SBRs suffered from process-
ing problems, due to their narrow mo-
lecular weight distribution (MWD). As
a matter of fact, the main problem for
s-SBR to overcome has always been the
non-interchangeability with the e-SBRs
commonly used by tyre producers; the
limited number of grades coming from
the emulsion process makes it easier
to switch from a supplier to the other,
without any re-conguration of the pro-
cessing machines and procedures.
So one of the main efforts of s-SBR
producers has been the search for a bet-
ter processability, which is obtained by
modifying polymer macro-structure
(i.e. MWD and long chain branching).
In this sense, the use of coupling agents
like SiCl
4
and SnCl
4
in the batch anio-
nic synthesis provided a way to broaden
the MWD, adding a star-shaped struc-
ture at the same time.
In order to maximize market share,
automotive companies have conti-
nuously developed vehicles with su-
perior performance and durability (in-
creased mileage). This has resulted in
SerieS On rubber part 2
Styrene-Butadiene Rubber: A Techno-commercial
Profile
183
184 Chemical Weekly October 27, 2009
Special Report
increasingly stringent tyre performance
specications. These have been partly
met by redesigning the structure com-
ponents (i.e. tread patterns and refor-
mulating compounds). In spite of their
resistance, tyre producers have found
no alternative to s-SBR grades for
highly specied tyre components for
high performance tyres. The need for
reducing fuel consumption led to the
denition of specications also for the
rolling resistance of the tread material:
in the US the CAFE (Corporate Aver-
age Fuel Economy) regulations are
gradually pushing in this direction. The
market is getting more and more de-
manding in the aforesaid specications
and such performances improvements
cannot be achieved with e-SBR, mak-
ing a gradual trend toward the use of
s-SBR inevitable.
s-SBR grades now have comparable
styrene content to emulsion types and
these grades have superior mechanical
properties e-SBR.
Typical e-SBRs contain 18% cis;
65% trans and 17% vinyl butadiene
forms.
s-SBRs may be divided into two
categories:
Random copolymers (80%): The
market for the random copolymers
is completely dominated by the
tyre industry (95%). These types
are usually extended with compa-
tible oil. They are blended with
other types of rubber, including NR,
and mixed with reinforcing llers
(carbon black and/or silica), oil and
vulcanising chemicals to produce
the tread compound where they im-
prove wet grip and decrease rolling
resistance, thus improving fuel con-
sumption;
Partial block types (20%): The par-
tial block types are used in rubber
ooring, carpet underlay, footwear
and in many other applications.
They also nd widespread use in
bitumen modication and in adhe-
sives.
Production technology
There are three conventional routes
to producing solid SBR:
Hot emulsion polymerization;
Cold emulsion polymerization; and
Solution polymerization.
Each process produces SBR grades
with different properties.
Hot emulsion polymerization
Hot emulsion polymerization is
the original SBR process. The major
characteristic of this process is that
these grades have exceptional process-
ing characteristics in terms of low mill
shrinkage, good dimensional stabi-
lity and good extrusion characteristics.
However, high levels of micro-gels are
also produced, so there is a trend to-
wards using the cold emulsion grades in
many applications.
However, they are
still used in ap-
plications such as
adhesives and ow
modiers for other
elastomers where
good ow proper-
ties are required.
Cold emulsion
polymerization
Cold emul-
sion polymeriza-
tion produces
SBR grades with
superior mechani-
cal properties,
especially tensile
strength and abra-
sion resistance,
compared to the
grades produced
by the hot emul-
sion polymeriza-
tion process. This
process has largely replaced the hot
emulsion polymerization process for
production of e-SBR grades.
Basics of emulsion polymerisation
Styrene and butadiene monomers
polymerize in the presence of an emul-
sier (fatty or rosin acid soaps), an ini-
tiator system, a modier (mercaptan)
and water. Initiator agent in case of cold
polymerization is the redox reaction
between chelated iron/organic peroxide
and sodium formaldehyde sulphoxylate
as reducing agent.
The MWD is primarily controlled
by addition of mercaptan, which termi-
nates the growing chains, besides initi-
ating the new ones.
Polymerization takes then place at
the mild conditions typical of emulsion
polymerization, controlling at the same
time the reactants ow rate up to the
addition of the shortstop agent when
Figure 1: Flow diagram of the e-SBR production process [Ref. 3]
Special Report
Chemical Weekly October 27, 2009 185
desired conversion is reached which
rapidly reacts with free radicals, block-
ing reaction.
Residual butadiene and styrene are
then removed from the short-stopped
lattice, which is rst stabilized by
addition of appropriate antioxidants
and then coagulated by using an inor-
ganic acid and chemical aids to regulate
crumb dimensions.
The coagulated crumb is then
washed, dewatered, dried, baled and
packaged.
The major cost in e-SBR manufac-
ture is the purchase of monomers. The
monomer price is dependent on the
crude oil price, but can uctuate quite
widely due to other reasons.
About 70 % of e-SBR is used for
the manufacture of car tyres, in particu-
lar in the tread where it confers a good
balance between wear resistance and
wet grip. e-SBR is also used to manu-
facture conveyor belts, ooring and
carpet underlay, hoses, seals, sheeting,
footwear and a large number of other
rubber goods.
Solution polymerization
Solution polymerization grades
have superior mechanical proper-
ties, particularly tensile strength,
low rolling resistance and handling
(encompasses traction under a vari-
ety of conditions and performance
at different speeds, when cornering
etc.), when used in tyre applications.
The ratio of butadiene configurations
varies. Generally speaking, s-SBR
grades have a lower trans and vinyl
content and a higher cis-butadiene
content than e-SBR grades.
s-SBR is of particular importance
because of the improved performance
and exibility of the grade range. It is a
preferred component with silica ller in
the so-called green tyres which exhi-
bit low rolling resistance and therefore
improved fuel economy.
In initially making s-SBR grades
producers attempted to replicate the
stereochemistry of e-SBR grades. How-
ever, solution polymerization differs
from emulsion polymerization due to
its exibility and enables SBR grades
with varying styrene/butadiene ratios
and cis, trans and vinyl contents to be
produced by varying the catalyst and
the monomer ratios and process condi-
tions. This enables s-SBR producers to
produce grades specically tailored for
individual applications.
Most s-SBR producers have issued
patents relating to various aspects of
s-SBR production. However, there are
basically two commercial processes
used to produce conventional s-SBRs.
Phillips process
Commercial Phillips processes are
batch (although the patents cover both
batch and continuous polymerization)
and produce a branched polymer with
comparatively narrow molecular weight
distribution. Phillips is no longer in
the SBR business, but this process is
being utilized by a number of European
producers including Repsol, Petrochim
and Dow in Italy. The process has been
licensed by Petrona in Belgium in the
1990s.
Firestone process
The Firestone process is continuous,
producing s-SBR grades with more or
less linear chains and a comparatively
broad molecular weight distribution.
Basics of solution polymerization
The basic principles of the two solu-
tion processes are the same. s-SBR is
made by termination-free, anionic (liv-
ing) polymerization initiated usually
by alkyl-lithium compounds. The ab-
sence of a spontaneous termination step
enables the synthesis of polymers pos-
sessing a very narrow MWD and less
chain branching.
Solution rubber plants are generally
integrated into larger production sites,
which deliver the required feedstocks
(solvent and monomers), electricity,
steam, treated water and take back the
solvents for purication or combustion.
However, some plants generate their
own steam and treated water and import
the monomers and solvent.
Generally speaking, a solution di-
ene rubber process can be sub-divided
into the following process steps:
Purication of monomers and
solvent;
Polymerisation;
Hydrogenation (if applicable);
Blending section;
Solvent removal;
Product isolation; and
Packaging.
The chemicals used are:
The monomers (styrene and buta-
diene, in this case);
The catalyst (usually n- or s-butyl
lithium or Ziegler-Natta catalysts
based on transition metals such as
neodymium, titanium and cobalt);
The solvent (commonly cyclohex-
ane, hexane, heptane, toluene, cy-
clopentane, isopentane or mixtures
thereof); and
Process additives like coupling
agents, structure modiers, extender
oil, killing agents and product sta-
bilisers.
Carbon dioxide, water, oxygen, alco-
hols, mercaptans and primary/secondary
amines interfere with the activity of alkyl-
lithium catalysts, so the polymerization
must be carried out in a clean, near-an-
hydrous condition. Stirred bed or agitated
stainless steel reactors are widely used
commercially.
186 Chemical Weekly October 27, 2009
Special Report
Polymerization is carried out in a
solution of inert aromatic or aliphatic
solvent. The polymerization rate of
butadiene in the presence of lithium-
based catalyst is lower than styrene.
However, when butadiene and styrene
are mixed, the rate of polymerization is
reversed, resulting in block copolymer
production with a high proportion of
butadiene blocks. Block formation may
be suppressed since the property re-
quirements of traditional SBR markets
cannot be met by block copolymers.
Random copolymerization is encour-
aged by incorporating into the solution
randomising agents such as dialkyl
and heterocyclid ethers, which act as
Lewis base on the catalyst, or by con-
trolled monomer charging (i.e. some of
the styrene is added later in the poly-
merization cycle).
The resulting copolymer is precipi-
tated, separated, dried and baled.
Figure 2: Flow diagram of the s-SBR
production process [Ref. 3]
Technical developments
In recent years, SBR developments
have predominantly been initiated by
the tyre industry. This is not surprising
considering several of the SBR produ-
cers have put up their assets for sales in
recent times (e.g., Polimeri in Europe,
DSM in the US). This is partly due to
the commoditization of the business
and the butadiene price rise, which are
difcult to pass on to the tyre industry.
This has created severe pressure on
margins for SBR producers.
Therefore, the majority of recent
developments have been undertaken by
the tyre companies themselves, rather
than the SBR producers who were more
active in the past.
Property optimization of SBR has
been achieved, to some extent, by con-
ventional s-SBR technology. By modi-
fying the way in which monomers are
added, the polymerization conditions
and the use of co-catalysts and rando-
mizing agents, the proportion of cis and
vinyl isomers and the chain structure
of the tailored polymers can be altered.
Nevertheless, the overall properties of
the tailored s-SBRs sometimes fall short
of expected tyre industry requirements.
The automotive industry is under con-
tinuous pressure to improve the environ-
mental performance and the useful life of
automotive components. s-SBR produc-
ers are responding by modifying conven-
tional s-SBR technology to develop grades
with optimum combinations of rolling re-
sistance, wear resistance, blow-out resis-
tance, chipping/chunking resistance, road
traction under a variety of weather condi-
tions, handling, noise transmissions and
other performance properties for different
tyre applications.
There are a number of ways in
which these improvements are being
achieved:
Reformulating compounds using high
performance additives in conjunction
with tailored s-SBR grades;
Developing novel additives/modi-
ers that can be added to the SBR at
the compound stage;
Further modication of polymeriza-
tion conditions to enable both block
and random copolymerization;
Introduction of post-polymerization
steps to enable better control of co-
polymer end-group structure, thus
signicantly altering the properties
of the resulting SBR;
Introduction of post-polymerization
steps to facilitate better interaction
with the reinforcement system. This is
one of the most radical developments
affecting the rubber industry, since it
enables silica to signicantly displace
carbon black as the favoured rein-
forcement for tyre applications.
SBR is generally compounded with
a vulcanization system, reinforcing l-
ler (usually carbon black), processing/
extending oil, and an antioxidant/stabi-
lizer package, prior to molding/fabrica-
tion. Tyre compounds frequently use a
combination of elastomers in order to
achieve optimum properties in the nal
application.
Markets for synthetic rubber (SR)
World consumption of SR grew by
4.6% in 2006 to reach 12.4-mt, compared
to 11.9-mt in the previous year, and by a
further 6.7% in 2007 to 13.2-mt. How-
ever, the consumption in 2008 fell by 5%,
compared to consumption in 2007, ac-
cording to the International Rubber Study
Group (IRSG). Global production of SR
also fell by 5% in 2008 over 2007.
SRs share of the total rubber market
edged up slightly from 56.7% in 2005 to
57.3% in 2006 and 57.5% in 2007. This
share however, fell to 55.5% in 2008.
Consumption of SR in North America
declined by 0.5% from 2.228-mt in
2005 to 2.217-mt in 2006 with the
decline accelerating a further 3.5% in
2007 to 2.14-mt. The consumption in
2008 declined further by 11% to 1.89-
mt, according to IRSG statistics.
In contrast, SR consumption in Asia/
Oceania grew by 9.4% from 5.24-mt
in 2005 to 5.73-mt in 2006 and by
11.1% to 6.37-mt in 2007, but de-
clined in 2008 by 4% in 2008.
The European Union also recorded
strong growth in SR consumption,
increasing by 7.5% from 2.52-mt in
2006 to 2.71-mt in 2007, but declined
by 6% in 2008.
Special Report
Chemical Weekly October 27, 2009 187
Table 3
Synthetic rubber consumption
[kilotons]
2007
2008
2008
2009
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1
North America 2,129 492 494 482 429 1,897 361
Latin America 864 222 228 233 207 890 180
European Union 2,514 692 678 543 459 2,372 419
Other Europe 1,014 249 256 233 174 911 168
Africa 105 29 27 26 23 105 22
Asia/Oceania 6,527 1,607 1,704 1,594 1,370 6,274 1,405
Total 13,284 3,314 3,411 3,142 2,719 12,586 2,566
Source: IRSG
Table 2
Synthetic rubber production
[kilotons]
2007
2008
2008
2009
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1
North America 2,790 675 655 595 485 2,410 410
Latin America 684 183 189 177 143 691 122
European Union 2,684 688 674 602 538 2,502 495
Other Europe 1,289 363 338 295 211 1,207 228
Africa 71 21 22 19 17 78 16
Asia/Oceania 5,916 1,454 1,577 1,493 1,403 5,926 1,453
Total 13,434 3,383 3,454 3,180 2,796 12,813 2,724
Source: IRSG
Table 1
Technical parameters for a typical s-SBR plant
Product type s-SBR, batch or continuous type
Reactor type and size Continuously stirred tank reactors in series or batch reactors, 10-100m
3
Monomer addition Simultaneous addition of styrene and butadiene
Number of reactors in use Up to 10 depending on the process
Polymerization pressure Up to 5-bar
Polymerization temperature and
control system
30-100
o
C; control system based in external evaporators, cooling coils, adiabatic
Catalysts/initiators Various anionic initiators (usually n-butyllithium)
Structure modiers Various ethers, e.g. THF, TMEDA
Shortstops Water and/or fatty acids
Conversion of monomer to polymer 95-99%
Antioxidant p-Phenylenediamine derivatives, phenolic types, phosphite types
Extender oil Highly aromatic, treated distillate aromatic extract (TDAE), mild extract solvent
Capacity per reactor line Typically 30,000-tpa
Table 4
World consumption of elastomers
by region [2006]
Market
size [tons]
Share
[%]
Asia-Pacic 11,637 54
Europe 4,895 23
N. America 3,344 16
Rest of world 1,510 7
Total 21,386 100
Source: Reference 4; IISRP
Table 5
World consumption of synthetic
elastomers by region [2006]
Market
size [tons]
Share
[%]
Asia-Pacic 5,954 48
Europe 3,462 28
N. America 2,113 17
Rest of world 889 7
Total 12,418 100
Source: Reference 4; IISRP
Markets for SBR
SBRs are the largest-volume SR,
accounting for about 46% of world
188 Chemical Weekly October 27, 2009
Special Report
consumption of SR in 2006, accord-
ing to the International Institute of
Synthetic Rubber Producers (IISRP).
Historically, this percentage had been
steadily declining (it was 57% in
1976) because of the following major
reasons:
The increasing popularity of radial
tyres, which use less SBR and more
NR than other tyre designs (e.g.,
bias-belted tyres); and
Faster growth of other SR as a sub-
stitute for SBR (e.g., EPDM, nitrile
and polybutadiene rubbers), espe-
cially in non-tyre applications.
As a result, world
SBR production and
consumption showed
little or no growth in
the 1980s and 1990s,
but have shown steady
growth since 2000 with
consumption steadily
increasing as a result of
growing consumption in
emerging regions (such
as China, India, South
America, Russia and
other parts of Asia).
With global demand
of about 5.8-mt per year
in 2006, SBR is the
most popular SR. However, demand for
natural rubber (NR) is still higher.
SBR are the largest commodity rub-
ber consumed in China, Western Eu-
rope, North America, Japan and the
Republic of Korea. China is the major
consumer of SBR, followed by Western
Europe, the United States, Japan and
the Republic of Korea.
North America (United States and
Canada) is the only region in the world
that is expected to see a decrease in
SBR consumption in the period from
2006 through 2011. The decrease is
due mainly to
a decrease in
tyre produc-
tion closing/
idling of tyre
plants and tyre
p r o d u c t i o n
moving off-
shore.
Nearly, 70%
of SBR is con-
sumed by the
automobile in-
dustry for tyres
and tyre pro-
ducts where it
is most widely used in the manufacture
of tread.
Industry structure
Globally, SBR is a fragmented in-
dustry with little leadership. The situ-
ation in s-SBR is better than e-SBR,
where there is generally more market
discipline and technology is harder to
obtain.
Global over-capacity in e-SBR has
led to a ood of low cost exports from
Eastern and Central Europe and Asia
into North America and Western Eu-
rope, which has depressed prices and
production.
Healthy market for Europe
Demand for SBR in Europe was re-
ported to be healthy in 2007, with the
tyre sector performing strongly. Total
SBR demand in Europe is expected
to grow around 2%/year with e-SBR
growing at 1%/year and s-SBR by 4%/
year.
The massive build-up of tyre capa-
city in central and eastern Europe has
continued. Manufacturers including
Bridgestone, Continental and Pirelli are
investing in extra production in Hun-
gary, Romania, Poland, Slovakia and
Russia over the next two years.
European SBR producers are fac-
ing new EU regulations, due to come
in force in 2010, which will prohibit
the use of high aromatic oil-extended
products in the manufacture of tyres.
For vehicles sold in the EU, this means
a phased switch from the 1712 grade,
specically for tyres, to grades using
other products such as treated distillate
aromatic extract.
China drives demand
The growth market in Asia is
China. According to China Chemical
Reporter, Chinese SBR demand rose
by 21% in 2006 to reach 747-kt. How-
Table 6
World consumption of synthetic elastomers
by type [2006]
Market size
[kilotons]
Share
[%]
SBR 5,775 47
Butyl rubber 3,311 28
EPDM rubber 1,664 11
NBR 620 5
Chloroprene rubber 496 4
Polyisoprene 312 3
High performance elastomers 240 2
Total 12,418 100
Source: Reference 4; IISRP
Figure 3: World consumption of SBR by region
Source: SRI Consulting
Special Report
Chemical Weekly October 27, 2009 189
ever, production only increased by 11%
to 571-kt, resulting in imports increas-
ing by almost 60% to 187-kt.
Signicant new SBR capacity is
planned for China.
Lanzhou Petrochemical started up a
100-ktpa unit at Lanzhou in March
2008;
Bridgestone started up a 50-ktpa
plant in Huizhou, Guangdong in Q2
2008;
Qilu Petrochemical is building a
100-ktpa facility at Zibo scheduled
for 2009 completion;
A100-ktpa unit is being built by Du-
shanzi Petrochemical in Xinjiang,
due to for start up in 2010; and
A 200-ktpa facility is being built by
Fushun Petrochemical in Liaoning,
due to for start up in 2010.
Indian SBR markets
There is no local production of SBR
in India (with the only plant of Syn-
thetics and Chemicals at Bareilly (Ut-
tar Pradesh), having closed down) and
the entire requirements are being met
through imports.
Imports have increased steadily to
about 100-kt and are mainly from Taiwan,
Korea, Russia, Thailand and Brazil.
Table 7
Imports of SBR into India
[Kilotons]
Year Imports
2000-01 36
2001-02 49
2002-03 63
2003-04 76
2004-05 70
2005-06 93
2007-08 106
2008-09 100
According to reports, Japanese SBR
producers are planning to re-enter India
about 10 years after they moved out of
the market to focus more on their stable
domestic market and the burgeoning
Chinese and Southeast Asian markets.
JSR, for example, has been making at-
tempts to ofoad their surplus stocks in
India. Zeon, another producer, has also
expressed interest to participate in the
Indian market.
India is a spot-driven and price-sen-
sitive market that usually does not hold
much attraction for contract-oriented
and higher-priced premium products.
The Japanese SBR producers entered
the Indian synthetic rubber market in
the 1980s, but Korean producers sub-
sequently dominated the market be-
cause of a more competitive pricing
strategy.
Indias proximity to Europe and the
Middle East also attracts supplies of
Iranian, Russian, Italian and German
SBR.
Indian tyre industry
Total vehicle production including
two-and-three-wheelers in India stood
at 10.8mn in the scal year ending
March 2008, according to the Society
of Indian Automobile Manufacturers,
while the countrys current annual SBR
demand is estimated at around 100,000
tons.
India is among the few countries in
the world that has achieved self-suf-
ciency in manufacturing of automotive
tyres. Little wonder, almost all inter-
national auto-majors present in India
have rolled out their vehicles on Indian-
manufactured tyres. Interestingly, while
Table 8
Imports of SBR into India
Quantity
[Tons]
Value
[Rs. Lakh]
Country 2006-07 2007-08 2006-07 2007-08
Argentina 1,430.28 278.9 973.38 207.47
Brazil 9,833.92 5,209.10 7,174.45 3,764.76
Taiwan 13,051.97 9,353.00 9,559.46 6,573.91
France 1,697.58 879.52 1,369.85 761.92
Germany 6,426.96 7,258.86 4,788.07 5,243.53
Indonesia 1,027.46 529.61 618.95 240.58
Japan 1,455.19 3,743.04 1,459.61 3,377.98
Korea 25,233.36 49,744.62 18,036.86 35,309.25
Russia 15,092.40 9,578.87 10,173.80 8,121.65
Singapore 1,192.49 21.13 614.82 16.41
Spain 819.27 789.76 700.63 751.88
Thailand 5,728.04 5,966.34 4,155.07 4,200.78
UK 2,041.88 4,256.33 1,481.55 2,636.32
USA 3,067.34 4,497.11 2,710.55 3,529.87
Total 93,015.09 106188.1 67,391.74 77,991.04
Source: DGCIS
Note: Only countries supplying more than 1,000-tons are listed
190 Chemical Weekly October 27, 2009
Special Report
the growth in auto sector has largely
come from the entry of international
auto giants, the concomitant growth in
tyre industry has been driven largely by
domestic majors.
The tyre industry is highly raw
material intensive with raw materials
accounting for 60% of industry turn-
over. The sharp volatility in raw ma-
terial prices, in particular NR prices,
has been the bane of the industry. The
industry is also faced with a situation
wherein import of rubber as raw ma-
terial is discouraged, while import of
tyres, as a nished product, is encour-
aged. The import duty on NR is a hefty
20%, while that on tyres is 10 %. The
industry has repeatedly asked for rec-
tifying this aberration of inverted duty
structure, either by decreasing the im-
port duty on NR or by increasing im-
port duty on tyres.
Another area that is a cause of con-
cern for the industry is the dumping of
cheap tyres into the country. Subsequent
to the economic meltdown and dip in
demand in developed nations, countries
such as China are looking at potential
markets and India is seen as a lucrative
one. Already, we have seen more than
1,000% increase in imports of tyres
from China over the last few years.
The reason why the tyre industry is
important is that it provides value-addi-
tion in a long chain from the plantation
(for NR) to the end-product (tyre). As
much as 58% of the total NR produced
in India is consumed by the tyre sector
and roughly over 0.6-mn NR growers,
are dependent on the tyre sector.
Table 9
Indian tyre industry at a glance
Turnover Rs. 22,500-crore
Production (Tonnage) 1.175-mt
Production All cate-
gories (Nos.)
82.1-mn
Exports (Value) : Rs. 3,500-crore
Number of companies 36
Industry structure 10 large companies account for 95% of production
Radialisation Level -
Current (as a % of total
tyre production)
Passenger car tyres: 98%
Light commercial vehicles: 18%
Heavy vehicles (truck & bus): 8%
Figures are estimates for 2008-09
Table 10
Tyre production in India
[Lakh nos.]
Category 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09
Truck & bus 9,863 10,821 11,092 11,941 12,367 13,137 12,839
Passenger car 8,544 9,959 11,862 13,605 14,264 16,437 16,571
Jeep 1,384 1,440 1,462 1,272 1,368 1,467 1,469
Light Commercial Ve-
hicles (LCV)
2,844 3,271 3,945 4,529 4,820 5,320 5,298
Tractor front 1,125 1,148 1,311 1,383 1,754 1,814 1,842
Tractor rear 825 842 1,096 1,134 1,296 1,234 1,315
Tractor trailer 470 415 408 596 823 886 758
ADV 456 295 197 325 381 409 281
Scooter 9,875 9,274 9,992 9,519 9,643 11,604 10,882
Motor cycle 15,654 16,688 18,127 21,053 26,079 27,921 30,148
Moped 185 168 124 55 0* 0* 0
Industrial 309 295 377 514 635 733 568
OTR 51 74 89 106 115 141 136
Aero 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 515,585 54,690 60,082 66,032 73,545 81,103 82,107
Source: ATMA
Note: * From April 2006 moped tyre production included in scooter category
Special Report
Chemical Weekly October 27, 2009 191
Raw materials
The tyre industry is highly raw-
material intensive. Raw material costs
accounts for about 63% of tyre industry
turnover and 70% of production costs.
The cost of rubber is the single largest
component of raw material costs.
REFERENCES
1. Chemsystems PERP program,
New Report Alert, January 2004.
2. Chemical Industries Newsletter,
SRI Consulting.
Table 13
Composition of automotive tyres
Raw material Radial tyres
1
Tyres
2
Tubes
3
Natural Rubber 34.8 44 5
SBR 0.06 8.60
4
Vinyl-pyridine latex 0.020 0.40
Polybutadiene rubber 12.36
Carbon black 22 23 30
Nylon tyre yarn/cord
wrap/sheet/fabric
0.393 13
Bead wire 3.36 4
Butyl rubber 0 53
Steel tyre cord 15.48
Rubber chemicals 2 2 2
Zinc oxide 2 2 2
Misc. materials 7.5 8.0 8.0
Total 100 100 100
1: Automobile steel belted radials per 100-kg tyre
2: Automobile tyres reinforced with nylon/rayon tyrecord/wrap sheet per 100-kg
3: Automobile tubes per 100-kg
4: Includes SBR and PBR
Table 11
Tube production in India
Category 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09
Truck & bus 7,982 8,851 9,439 10,522 11,257 12,016 11,911
Passenger car 4,762 5,331 5,947 6,990 8,509 11,490 10,773
Jeep 1,038 1,056 1,040 1,066 1,132 1,416 1,411
Light commercial Vehicles
(LCV)
2,147 2,633 3,100 3,775 4,156 4,147 4,213
Tractor front 835 907 1,053 1,232 1,425 1,443 1,334
Tractor rear 231 187 140 165 213 181 184
Tractor trailer 5,750 5,624 6,439 7,044 7461 9,128 8,242
ADV 13,978 15,415 18,671 22,263 28,067 30,817 31,526
Scooter 176 270 347 227 0* 0* 0
Motor cycle 65 50 71 99 108 112 79
Moped 15 19 26 38 48 60 60
Total 36,979 40,342 46,273 53,421 62,376 70,810 69,733
Note: * From April 2006 moped tyre production included in scooter category
Source: ATMA
Table 12
Raw material composition of tyres
Raw material Raw material
cost [%]
Natural rubber 42
Nylon tyre cord
fabric
16
Carbon black 11
Rubber chemicals 5
Butyl rubber 5
Polybutadiene rubber 6
SBR 5
Others 10
Total 100
Represents cost as a percentage of total raw
material cost
3. Best available techniques in the
production of polymers, European
Commission, Oct. 2006.
4. An overview of the high perfor-
mance elastomers market, Martin
W. Lee, High Performance Elasto-
mers Conference, Frankfurt, Ger-
many 2007.
5. Polimeri Europa, Technical Bulle-
tin on e-SBR process technology.
6. China Chemical Reporter, Feb 6,
2009.
[Lakh nos.]