Vittoria has applied graphene in the rubber of bicycle tires since 2015, and the nanomaterial has been proven to provide excellent improvements in grip, rolling resistance, puncture resistance and durability.
For the start of the partnership, Vittoria and Haydale jointly produced improved rubber compounds, with subsequent laboratory and field tests confirming these new compounds further improved tire performance.
To meet Vittoria’s production and quality requirements, Haydale will utilize its new high-capacity HT1400 plasma reactor. Moving forward, Vittoria and Haydale will investigate the possibility of starting production of functionalized graphene in Thailand, near the Vittoria Group factories. To support this, a letter of intent has been signed with the pair’s co-owned Thai nanotech subsidiary, Graphene Creations.
“We are excited to be working with Vittoria on their graphene-enhanced cycling tires which demonstrates the impact that our HD Plas functionalization technology can have on the tire and wider elastomer market,” said Keith Broadbent, CEO, Haydale. “We are also looking forward to working more closely with Graphene Creations, and to leveraging our technical expertise with their business development skills.”
“Our unique know-how of graphene helps us make the most advanced bicycle tires on the planet,” added Stijn Vriends, president and CEO, Vittoria Group. “We are very pleased to partner with Haydale to further innovate in this field and have local production of graphene in Thailand as a common goal.”
“We have been working with Haydale for the past couple of years on research and application development projects, so we are extremely confident that by combing Haydale’s unique technical expertise on nanomaterials and our market access, we will further expand the commercialization of graphene into various industries,” explained Ted Thirapatana, CEO, Graphene Creations. “Our application development platform is built on several years of tested data collected throughout the sourcing, functionalization and production processes.”
Read the original article on Tire Technology International Magazine.
