Stretching the Future: Alternatives for Rubber
Presentation Type
Short presentation 10-15 minutes
In Person or Zoom Presentation
In-Person
Campus
Daytona Beach
Status
Student
Faculty/Staff Department
Honors
Student Year and Major
Sophomore, Aerospace Engineering
Presentation Description/Abstract
Rubber is used in countless applications for daily life, consumer products, and the global economy. The majority of rubber still comes from natural latex and elastomers from rubber tree sap. Nearly all natural rubber is grown on man-made orchards in Southeast Asia despite the tree being native to South America. It is prone to many issues affecting its growth, such as climate change and disease. This has caused rubber production to fall short of demand for five consecutive years, making it a volatile commodity in both price and supply, prompting the need for renewable, sustainable, and stable alternatives. This literature review presentation will cover Thermoplastic Polyurethanes (TPUs), which could play a key role in addressing ongoing supply challenges for rubber worldwide. TPUs have the elasticity and reliability of rubber with the added properties of processing advantages and recyclability of thermoplastics, additionally being synthesized from
natural products like castor oil rather than petroleum. The main downside associated with current TPU technology are cost, lack of resources, and poor performance at higher temperature ranges. Current TPU pricing is about 40-50% higher than natural rubber, though manufacturing is significantly easier. Structural integrity degrades above 100 °C, so additional materials will be needed for certain applications. Despite these drawbacks, TPUs remain a highly adaptable material platform. With continued research and innovation in bio-based chemistry, they have the potential to become a cost-effective, recyclable, and sustainable alternative to natural rubber, providing a more resilient foundation for thousands of essential products worldwide.
Keywords
Materials, Sustainability, Alternatives, Rubber
Stretching the Future: Alternatives for Rubber
Rubber is used in countless applications for daily life, consumer products, and the global economy. The majority of rubber still comes from natural latex and elastomers from rubber tree sap. Nearly all natural rubber is grown on man-made orchards in Southeast Asia despite the tree being native to South America. It is prone to many issues affecting its growth, such as climate change and disease. This has caused rubber production to fall short of demand for five consecutive years, making it a volatile commodity in both price and supply, prompting the need for renewable, sustainable, and stable alternatives. This literature review presentation will cover Thermoplastic Polyurethanes (TPUs), which could play a key role in addressing ongoing supply challenges for rubber worldwide. TPUs have the elasticity and reliability of rubber with the added properties of processing advantages and recyclability of thermoplastics, additionally being synthesized from
natural products like castor oil rather than petroleum. The main downside associated with current TPU technology are cost, lack of resources, and poor performance at higher temperature ranges. Current TPU pricing is about 40-50% higher than natural rubber, though manufacturing is significantly easier. Structural integrity degrades above 100 °C, so additional materials will be needed for certain applications. Despite these drawbacks, TPUs remain a highly adaptable material platform. With continued research and innovation in bio-based chemistry, they have the potential to become a cost-effective, recyclable, and sustainable alternative to natural rubber, providing a more resilient foundation for thousands of essential products worldwide.