New Trends in Rubber Downstream Industries

Tesla plant settled in Lingang, Shanghai, with an annual capacity of 500,000 pieces.

On July 10, 2018, Tesla signed an investment agreement of pure electric automobile project with Shanghai Lingang Management Committee and Shanghai Lingang Economic Development (Group). Tesla will independently build Gigafactory 3, which integrates R&D, manufacturing, sales, etc., in Lingang area. The project plans to produce 500,000 pure electric finished automobile per year, and this is the largest foreign-invested manufacturing projects in Shanghai's history.

According to the agreement, Shanghai will actively support Tesla to set up a subsidiary and an electric automobile R&D and innovation center, integrated with R&D, manufacturing and sales and other functions in Shanghai to promote the transformation of innovative technological achievements, accelerate the development of globalization, push forward the development of Shanghai's high-end manufacturing industry, speed up the construction of a world-class automobile industry center and achieve a win-win cooperation.

Tesla (Shanghai) Electric Automobile R&D Innovation Center is an important part of Tesla's global R&D system. It is mainly engaged in R&D and innovation of electric automobiles and will actively promote the transformation of electric automobile innovation technology achievements.

Wood chips to make tires? Michelin has new research plans.

Recently, Michelin has announced a new research plan, which intends to replace the organic elastomer in tire production with wood chip products. This means that the future tire manufacturing will be able to break loose from the extreme dependence on petroleum.

According to Cyrille Roget, director of the Michelin Science and Innovation Public Relations Department, the wooden material will come from industrial waste, and the progress in research and development will make it closer to achieving sustainable and recyclable tires.

Roget said that nearly 80% of the standard car tires come from the petroleum industry. As for the feedstock, planting trees is much easier than drilling oil wells, and oil is a short-term non-renewable energy source.

Rubber will still be an important part of this tire, but Michelin hopes to achieve further sustainability and plans to bring this concept tire to consumers in 2020.

 “We are still working on the printing technology for rubber and polymers,” adds Roget. “We are in the early stages of this technology, and this will be completed in the next 10 to 15 years. But, the arrival of new technologies may shorten this time."