reTyre, a sustainable tyre manufacturer, will unveil the world’s first carbon-neutral tyre at Eurobike 2024. This innovative concept tyre is made entirely from reclaimed materials, showcasing reTyre’s commitment to reducing emissions and revolutionising sustainable tyre production.

Sustainable materials for a greener future

The carbon-neutral tyre incorporates several unique materials, each chosen for its minimal environmental impact. Algae, sourced through controlled harvesting of blooms, helps restore aquatic ecosystems by preventing eutrophication and methane release. Recycled para-aramid, obtained from used body armour, is broken down and repurposed for the tyre’s beads and puncture protection, promoting a closed-loop recycling system and incorporating renewable carbon. Locally sourced post-consumer recyclate (PCR) with a low carbon footprint further minimises environmental impact. Finally, recycled fish nets collected from oceans are used for the tyre casing, leading to a 49 percent reduction in emissions and a 15 percent decrease in energy use compared to virgin materials.

Friedemann Ohse, who is leading the Carbon-Neutral Tyre Project at reTyre, elaborates on the meticulous process behind achieving carbon neutrality: “The product carbon footprint of this tyre is based on our third-party verified LCA, including the end-of-life, which is how we measure all our products. Our production and transportation processes are optimised to have close to zero emissions. End-of-life is reduced to almost zero due to the recycling of the tyres. The algae used in the tyre has a negative CO2 equivalent, balancing any remaining emissions to achieve a net-zero impact. This way, we have a carbon-neutral product without using well-known shortcuts, such as carbon quotas, subsidies, or other non-product-related contributions.”

Global collaboration for sustainability

reTyre partners with suppliers worldwide to ensure the responsible sourcing of materials. The UN Ecosystem Restoration Programme supports algae harvesting from lakes and oceans across the globe.

Sustainable tyres without compromise

reTyre offers a comprehensive portfolio of 100 percent sustainable products, providing brands with high-quality, eco-friendly tyres. Bio-based and fully renewable materials, never before used in pneumatic tyres, significantly reduce emissions. Additionally, a third-party-verified life cycle assessment (LCA) confirms an 82 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to conventional tyres.

Ohse continues: “This carbon-neutral tyre is at a concept stage, and it is a result of continuous innovation that shows what our unique manufacturing is capable of.”

Beyond innovation: a full range of sustainable options

Alongside the groundbreaking carbon-neutral tyre, reTyre will showcase its entire range of sustainable products, including the new City Range bicycle tyre models explicitly designed for urban riders. These tyres boast bio-based and sustainable materials utilising reusable plant-based elastomers, new tread patterns for enhanced performance and grip, and matching performance to standard tyres, ensuring a smooth, eco-friendly cycling experience. The City Range also features a low carbon footprint throughout production and the product lifecycle and is fully reusable, setting a new benchmark in tyre sustainability. For complete data transparency, reTyre provides comprehensive compliance and sustainability tracking information.

reTyre’s entire product range prioritises sustainability and reusability, a unique proposition in the tyre industry. This commitment ensures that every component can be fully recycled and repurposed, fostering a closed-loop system that benefits the environment.

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Kumho Petrochemical Group is steering its business towards research-driven, higher-value outputs as oversupply and soft demand continue to weigh on the worldwide petrochemical sector. The Seoul-based group outlined plans to boost spending on speciality chemicals, sustainable materials and novel production methods, a push intended to lift profits while building a foundation for future expansion.

Underlying the move is a deliberate evolution in the group's identity, from a bulk materials vendor to a provider of technology-backed solutions that address shifting customer requirements and stricter environmental rules. A central element of that effort involves widening the speciality lineup, exemplified by added capacity for solution styrene butadiene rubber, a synthetic rubber that enhances durability, rolling resistance and tread wear in high-performance electric vehicle tyres.

Environmental initiatives form another pillar. Facilities built by the company can trap approximately 76,000 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide each year, while separately developed technology turns recycled acrylonitrile butadiene styrene sourced from scrapped household appliances into automotive-grade interior components that satisfy performance standards and generate fewer emissions than conventional methods. The group has also joined forces with POSCO Future M and BEI on anode-free lithium-metal battery development.

Parallel technology-focused programmes are underway at affiliated units. Kumho P&B Chemicals is formulating water-based epoxy resins that curb volatile organic compound releases while incorporating more bio-based inputs to reduce carbon intensity. Kumho Mitsui Chemicals is advancing bio-based polyurethane systems and electric vehicle materials, alongside debottlenecking work to add 100,000 tonnes of annual methylene diphenyl diisocyanate capacity. Kumho Polychem, meanwhile, is targeting ethylene propylene diene monomer through low-temperature polymerisation paired with energy-efficiency improvements.

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Birla Carbon has confirmed a price increase of up to 15 percent for its Speciality Materials products across Asia, scheduled to take effect on 1 October 2026. The company pointed to significant and sustained rises in feedstock costs, driven partly by ongoing geopolitical instability and disruptions in global feedstock markets, as the reason behind the adjustment.

Although Birla Carbon pursued operational efficiencies, supply chain optimisation and disciplined cost management to soften the impact, the scale and persistence of the cost escalation left a price adjustment unavoidable. The company's sales teams will engage customers directly to explain the details and help them navigate the transition.

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ACE Laboratories, an independent ISO/IEC 17025-accredited polymer testing laboratory, has partnered with Abdallah Consulting, LLC, a prominent tyre pyrolysis advisory firm, to introduce VericarbSM. This independent certification programme verifies that materials marketed as recovered carbon black (rCB) meet established criteria for rCB.

Recovered carbon black, derived from end-of-life tyres via pyrolysis, serves as a sustainable substitute for virgin carbon black in rubber and polymer applications. However, the emerging market has lacked the standardisation and independent verification that established supply chains provide. VericarbSM addresses this gap through independent material characterisation and rubber performance data, offering stakeholders a consistent basis for evaluating rCB products.

For producers, certification accelerates market entry and improves buyer approval rates. Consumers gain more capable suppliers and reduced evaluation time, while investors benefit from clearer volume sizing and fewer costly test failures. The programme is jointly administered by both organisations.

Erick Sharp, CEO, ACE Laboratories, said, “The rCB market has enormous potential, but growth has been held back by uncertainty about material quality and consistency. VericarbSM gives producers a way to prove their product and gives buyers the independent data they need to say yes.”

Dave Abdallah, Founder, Abdallah Consulting, said, “One key reason for the delayed growth of recovered carbon black is lack of product performance information in the customer’s language. ASTM standards are critical; in fact, most testing done in the process follows ASTM methods. But customers relate to a product better when its performance is shown in applications relevant to them. VericarbSM solves the language issue by showing verified rCB in terms of rubber performance while simultaneously adding credibility via third-party analysis and reporting.”

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Zeon Corporation established Zeon Chemicals Kurashiki Co., Ltd. on 23 July 2026 to take over the acrylic rubber operations of fellow group firm Tohpe Corporation. The new entity, headquartered in Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture, is wholly owned by Zeon with paid-in capital of JPY 10 million and is led by representative Koji Minami.

On 21 August, Tohpe and the new subsidiary signed an absorption-type company split agreement, prompting Zeon to begin the procedures required under the Companies Act. Operations at the new company, focused on manufacturing and selling acrylic rubber and related activities, are scheduled to commence on 30 October 2026.

Acrylic rubber, known for its heat resistance, is used in automotive components including oil seals and hoses. The Zeon Group already maintains four production sites across Japan, United States and Thailand, forming a global supply network for the material.

The restructuring follows Zeon’s 11 May 2026 announcement that it would transfer Tohpe shares to NATOCO Co., Ltd. of Miyoshi City, Aichi Prefecture, as part of Tohpe’s paints business divestiture. Tohpe’s acrylic rubber operations, which complement Zeon’s Elastomers Business, will now be positioned as a key specialty rubber manufacturing site, with closer operational coordination intended to strengthen Group competitiveness and corporate value.

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