Japan's Teijin Fibers to supply recycled polyester fibers for production of eco-friendly tire cords

22-Dec-08

Japan's Teijin Fibers Limited will supply chemically recycled ECOPET PLUS® polyester fibers for the cords of Toyo Tire & Rubber's PROXES® Ne tires-special tires designed for environmentally oriented passenger cars. ECOPET PLUS is created through a closed-loop recycling system called ECO CIRCLE®, which was developed by Teijin. Union Tire Cord, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Teijin Fibers, will process raw ECOPET PLUS, preparing it for production into tire cord. The company developed ECOPET PLUS polyester fiber using advanced recycling technologies that chemically decompose polyester for conversion into raw polyester. The recycled material offers the purity of products derived from petroleum and therefore achieves the demanding performance levels required for tire cords. ECOPET PLUS will be used for the carcass, which functions like the framework of a tire. Until now, recycled materials were unable to meet the strict requirements of tire carcass fabric; however, Teijin Fibers' eco-friendly ECOPET PLUS has been adopted by Toyo Tire & Rubber, the company claims. Tire cords require strength, elasticity, adhesion to rubber, fatigue resistance, dimensional stability and heat resistance. In view of such demanding requirements, the company developed ECOPET PLUS polyester fiber using advanced recycling technologies that chemically decompose polyester for conversion into raw polyester.