Ho Chi Minh City, 05 June 2012, Bridgestone Vietnam Ltd. announces Bridgestone Japan Corporation has successfully synthesized high-cis polyisoprene rubber (IR) from Isoprene provided by Ajinomoto company - partners in the development of synthetic rubber for tires.
Tire demand to increase with the growth of industry production cars worldwide due to pay for the environmental protection and the development of social, Bridgestone Corporation, Japan is committed to first pioneer in the development of technology to use renewable resources capable and reused in the manufacture of tires.
Bridgestone Japan Corporation introduced many inventions to create "100% sustainable materials" products until 2050, and IR is derived from crude oil is which a limited resource. Bridgestone Corporation has studied the methods of raw production from renewable material resources to ensure the sustainable supply. With the advanced technology, IR has been successfully synthesized from isoprene (derived biomass) by Ajinomoto. This development is a key factor to achieve sustainable social development of the Bridgestone Corporation. Since IR can replace natural rubber, Bridgestone Corporation wants to develop IR into one of the most diverse materials for tires.
Through efforts in the study of applied biomaterials in natural rubber and synthetic rubber, Bridgestone Japan Corporation is taking steps to develop "100% raw sustainability" (re-create and re-use material resource).
*1 The bonding of two or more monomers to form a compound with large molecular weight, or the reaction. For example, polyisoprene is created through an isoprene and polymer reaction.
*2 Synthetic rubber (IR) created through a chemical reaction with isoprene
*3 A synthetic rubber (IR) raw material; a highly volatile and colorless liquid at room temperature.
*4 Materials that do not use resources such as fossil fuels that cannot be consumed indefinitely and are expected to be depleted.
*5 Chemicals effective in hastening polyisoprene reactions
1. Overview of Polymerized synthetic rubber that is successfully polymerized
・Uses biomass as raw material
・Fermentation technology from Ajinomoto Co, Inc. applied for creating isoprene
・Bridgestone polymerization catalyst technology used for producing polymerized synthetic rubber
Synthetic rubber from biomass feedstock (high-cis polyisoprene)
Bridgestone Corp.
(1) Representative director: Masaaki Tsuya, CEO
(2) Head office: 10-1 Kyobashi 1-chome, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan
(3) Established: March 1, 1931
(4) Sales: ¥3,024.3 billion (fiscal year ended December 31, 2011) (5) Employees: 143,124 (as of December 31, 2011)
(6) Businesses:
Tires: Production and sale of tires and tubes, automotive parts sales, automotive maintenance and repair services
Diversified products: Chemical and industrial products, sporting goods, bicycle production and
sales, other businesses
Ajinomoto Co., Inc.
(1) Representative director: Masatoshi Ito, President
(2) Head office: 15-1 Kyobashi 1-chome, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan
(3) Established: December 17, 1925 (founded May 20, 1909) (4) Sales: ¥1,197.3 billion (fiscal year ended March 31, 2012)
(5) Employees: 28,054 (as of October 1, 2011)
(6) Businesses:
Production and sales of seasonings, processed foods, amino acids, pharmaceuticals, chemical products