Soybean-Based Tires Could Reduce Global Oil Consumption (up to seven million gallons each year)

[Omaha Steve]

Source: Care 2 Make a Difference

by Beth Buczynski

One of the world’s largest tire companies claims to have developed a plant-based vehicle tire that could deliver a better performance than conventional rubber tires, while also reducing consumption petroleum-based oil.

Goodyear, which manufactures products in 22 countries around the world, said that by using soybean oil in tires, it can potentially increase tread life by 10 percent and reduce the tiremaker’s use of petroleum-based oil by up to seven million gallons each year.

In recent months, the company has been testing rubber compounds made with soybean oil instead of petroleum oil. It found that the soybean oil blends more easily with the silica used in building tires. Goodyear claims this discover could improve plant efficiency and reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

Now, I know what you’re probably thinking: this is the ethanol debacle all over again. Many are opposed to the idea of using a food crop for non-food purposes, and fear that doing so will drive up already high food prices. In most cases I would agree, but soybeans are a little bit different. Almost 60 percent of all soybeans in the world are genetically modified. In the United States, the levels are even higher, coming in at about 85 percent. That means pretty much any non-organic soy grown in the U.S. is bad for you and should be avoided.

FULL story at link.



Read more: http://www.care2.com/causes/soybean-based-tires-could-reduce-global-oil-consumption.html

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[Old Union Guy]

1. There is nothing wrong with genetically modified soybeans. n/t

[Chef Eric]

7. There is something wrong with all soy, both GM and natural.

Soy is a goitrogen, meaning it can suppress and damage the thyroid.

Furthermore, soy's phytoestrogens can cause hormonal disruption, increasing the risk of breast cancer, infertility, and endometriosis in women, as well as lowered sperm counts and infertility in men.

[may3rd]

10. Soy has been around and consumed in East Asia for a long time

I think the people eating tofu outnumber the theory that soy is worse than fast food industrial outputs, for example

[4th law of robotics]

20. If you're eating tires I suspect you'll have other problems that need adressing

[Chef Eric]

22. Nope, I quit that. nt

[judesedit]

15. Then you eat them.

[valerief]

2. Soybean plastic, too, instead of petrochemical plastic! nt

[lunatica]

3. They could be on the market in 2015

The last sentence in the article: "If indicators remain positive, Goodyear expects consumers will be able to purchase tires made with soybean oil as early as 2015."

[Tansy_Gold]

4. it's still a crop

Just because what's being grown isn't "edible" doesn't mean the land it's grown on can't be used for food crops. Also, one has to add into the equation the fuel required to grow the soybeans. Fields have to be plowed, disced, planted, fertilized, sprayed, and harvested before ever a drop of oil is squeezed from a single soybean.

[Missycim]

5. I agree

That land could for food for people

[dipsydoodle]

6. With the added benefit

when they wear out you can eat what's left.

[caseymoz]

8. Good news on the surface, but . . .

How much oil does it take to produce a bushel of soybeans? That's fertilizer, planting, harvest, transportation?

Is this really saving oil consumption, or does it make Goodyear look better while increasing oil consumption overall?

I have the same problem with Ethanol, which actually consumes more oil, at least when made from corn.

[Ready4Change]

13. Good questions.

I don't know the answer, but they are questions that should be asked.

[4th law of robotics]

21. A question I hope some scientist/economist team is working on

just like with bio-ethanol (as you say) simply claiming it will save oil because it is replacing oil in the finished product doesn't necessarily make it true if you look at the big picture.

Let's burn 1.1 gallons of gasoline to make 1 gallon of ethanol to save .63* gallons of gasoline. Math!

*lower energy density

[sorefeet]

9. HEEEEEEMPPP

Fuck all these bastards. They know that hemp can replace all oil based products. Why even experiment with other shit when you got the best already. Corruption is Americas only problem.

[Ready4Change]

14. Good comment.

At least they aren't proposing to make them out of corn oil.

[may3rd]

11. What amount of energy is consumed in the mfg of a soy tire vs petro chem tire ?

[snooper2]

12. wonder what a burn-out would smell like

LOL

[8 track mind]

17. Burned tofu?

Or wait isn't that made from beans?

[hunter]

16. What a marvelous idea! Turning food into tires!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_hunger

Almost as bad as turning it into more people.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overpopulation

[KurtNYC]

18. Green-washing is when a large corporation which profits from damaging the environment

claims to be concerned about global warming.

Tires are designed with a certain tread life so OF COURSE they can make them with different lifespans. They make the lifespan which is most profitable.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenwashing

[Remmah2]

19. Soy and hemp!

Building blocks of the next generation.

[Make7]

23. Now we just have to eliminate the need for the other 99.9995% of oil produced per year. ( n/t )

[Synicus Maximus]

24. I guess you have to start somewhere, but its not like this will

make a dint in the use of oil. The US uses 18,690,000 barrels a day (2009 numbers) that is 784,980,000 gallons a day. 7 million gallons a year is not even .009 of one days usage in the US alone.