LAST year, Italian elastomer compounder API and mould maker Tecnostamp developed a “green life” tyre from PU as an alternative to tyres currently manufactured from vulcanised rubber. The tyres have been produced by Emanuele Conti & Partners’ Mecaplast S.a.S., which moulds wheels for the agricultural sector.
The new tyre is widely used in precision seeders to supplement wheels not intended for traction but, depending on their size and position in the seeder, for performing the functions of positioning, compressing and covering the seeds in the ground.
The firms say that considerable and prolonged abrasion caused by the ground causes vulcanised rubber tyres to wear down quickly. The green life tyre, in addition to being 100% recyclable, as it is made of PU resin belonging to the APILON 52 family created by API, also presents a series of technical and functional advantages such as superior wear and tear resistance, and improved elasticity. Moreover, the APILON 52 tyre weighs from 20% to 50% less than conventional vulcanised rubber tyres, and this translates into a lower fuel consumption in traction with consequential environmental benefits and energy and cost savings.