Ford, Ohio State Look To Dandelion Roots As A New Sustainable Rubber Resource

Researchers at Ford Motor Company, and The Ohio State University are looking to the dandelion as a new sustainable resource for rubber.

"We're always looking for new sustainable materials to use in our vehicles that have a smaller carbon footprint to produce, and can be grown locally," said Angela Harris, Ford Research Engineer. "Synthetic rubber is not a sustainable resource, so we want to minimize its use in our vehicles when possible. Dandelions have the potential to serve as a great natural alternative to synthetic rubber in our products."

The suitable species for this project is the Russian dandelion, Taraxacum kok-saghyz (TKS), which is being grown at The Ohio State University's Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC). A milky-white substance that seeps from the roots of this species of dandelion is used to produce the rubber.

"Managing weed problems is essential to developing TKS as a commercially viable domestic source of natural rubber in the U.S.," said Bill Ravlin, Associate Director of OARDC.

Ford could potentially use the substance as a plastics modifier, to help improve the impact strength of plastics. The material might then be used in places such as cupholders, floor mats, and interior trim.

"It's strange to see weeds being grown in perfectly manicured rows in a greenhouse, but these dandelions could be the next sustainable material in our vehicles," said Harris.

Before the dandelion-derived rubber can be put to use, Ford researchers will assess the initial quality of the material to evaluate how it will perform in a variety of plastics that are used in vehicles, and to ensure it meets durability standards.

Besides the dandelion, the team also is looking into the use of guayule (a southwestern U.S. shrub) as a natural rubber, which is provided by OARDC, and can also be grown domestically.

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