Update: Nokian's 'Green Step' tire shows sustainability possibilities

NOKIA, Finland—Looking to demonstrate its bona fides as developer of "green" products, Nokian Tyres P.L.C. has unveiled a concept tire with a material content that's 93 percent recycled or renewable.

The Nokian "Green Step" concept tire, unveiled during the global digital launch of the firm's latest-generation Hakkapaliitta winter tire line, moves the Finnish company closer to its goal of ensuring that half of the raw materials it uses in tire production are either recycled or renewable.

"Drivers are more and more interested in the sustainability of their tires, and this creates demand for us to create tires for these standards," said Jouko Ilomaki, development manager. "It also puts pressure on the industry to develop more eco-friendly materials, as well as for tire manufacturing technology to adapt to these materials.

"With a concept tire like the Green Step, we can push the limits. It's a win-win for all, but especially for the environment," he added.

The Green Step is a winter tire design, and thus is drivable on snow and ice.

The Green Step concept tire is made with natural rubber and renewable oils such as canola oil. Nearly all the plasticizer, resin and processing aids are from renewable resources, natural rice-husk ash silica works as a main filler for the tread and sidewall and renewable cord fiber is used in the tire's body plies.

Almost every component of the Green Step also includes some recycled materials. For example, the carbon black used in the rubber compounds was derived from end-of-life tires, and the butyl used in the inner surface as well as the steel in the steel belts and bead wires in the structure are mainly recycled.

"We believe that using recycled rubber and especially recycled carbon black will be a future trend in tire manufacturing," Ilomaki said. "By the year 2030, we will have multiple new suppliers and more advanced technology. Also, the demand for raw materials with either recycled or renewed components will increase."

Nokian started the design process for the Green Step about a year ago, but Teemu Soini, senior manager, materials development, said the concept relies on decades of "innovation and accumulated expertise" on sustainable tire design.

"Many of the sustainable innovations found in the Green Step are already used in our tires, and regular drivers have been able to benefit from them for years," he said. "We made new innovations during the process of designing the Green Step and they will be incorporated in the future tires offered to consumers all around the globe. We wanted to explore the limits of our sustainable innovation capabilities and the result was the Green Step. It is a testament to our ambition and knowhow."

Some of the materials used in the concept tire have been used in other, previous tire models, Nokian said. Alternative sources for natural rubber, such as the guyule plant, are also researched.

Renewable oils are common in the company's products, as Nokian stopped using high-aromatic oils in 2005.