If you can have a car of different colours then why not tires?
Tires are mostly made with rubber and rubber is white then why are tires black?
If tires were used to be white, so why were they changed to colour black?
Read the blog below to find out.
History of Tyres
Tires have been revolving for a long period and over the decades have gone through some major changes with adopting technology and innovation. It started with the wood wheels, after some time metal wheels and after some time bands of iron were placed in the wooden wheels to increase the stability. Since the real colour of the rubber is milky white the tires were also white at that time, so the tires seen nowadays were originally white.
Why black colour?
In 1880s when cars were invented, they use to have white tires. As the automotive industry grew they found out by doing research that white rubber tires are not providing durability. As a result of this tire manufacturers started adding soot in the tire compounds to increase the tire’s life. The research claimed that soot increases the longevity of tires. Also, tire cords were inserted, which were called cotton threads at that time. All these actions increased the tire strength, structure and also reduced heat.
As the years passed and both the automobile and tire manufacturer started innovation and started using black carbon instead of soot, as it dramatically improves the durability and makes the tire strong. Carbon black is a powdered material manufactured by heavy petroleum products for e.g. coal and tar. The reason tires are black because carbon black has a black colour and black colour camouflages the dirt stains in comparison to the colour white, so it would be impossible to keep your white tires clean.
How does Carbon black help?
Carbon black increases the strength and stiffness of the tires when it is mixed with the other polymers. Carbon black stops the tire from getting heated as the tire has direct contact with the road and there is a possibility of getting on fire. Carbon black also protects the tires from ozone and UV light. If carbon black was not used tires would melt when they are exposed ozone and UV lightfor a longer period.
Tires play a vital role in the vehicle because a tire in bad shape can have an impact on your vehicle’s performance from acceleration and handling to braking and comfort. Therefore black tires are popularly manufacturedas it increases durability and safety.
