Sustainable Tire Protection: LANXESS Launches New Anti-Aging Agent as an Alternative for 6PPD

LANXESS has developed Vulkanox 4060, a new anti-aging agent for the tire industry. The innovative additive with the chemical name CCPD (N,N'-Dicyclohexyl-p-phenylenediamine) was designed as an alternative to 6PPD – an anti-aging agent used in nearly all tires to protect them from damage caused by oxygen and ozone. The degradation products of 6PPD, particularly 6PPD quinone, which has been linked to coho salmon die-offs in the U.S., have been the subject of criticism for some time. In environmental studies conducted to date, CCPD quinone, the corresponding transformation product of Vulkanox 4060, demonstrated no observed acute effects in coho salmon testing up to the solubility limit. With the completion of EU REACH registration, Vulkanox 4060 is now also approved for use in the European market.

“Vulkanox 4060 is LANXESS’s response to a specific ecotoxicological and regulatory challenge the tire industry is facing. Extensive testing by LANXESS and our customers has shown that CCPD matches the technical performance of 6PPD – while offering a significantly improved environmental profile. With the completion of the REACH registration, we can now offer this product to the market,” says Holger Graf, Head of the Functional Tire Additives Business Line at LANXESS. “Initial commercial production of Vulkanox 4060 is already planned for the fourth quarter of this year. This represents another milestone in meeting the strong interest from our customers, particularly in the U.S. and Europe, and in further driving the replacement of 6PPD.”

Safer by Design: Sustainability at the Heart of Development

Vulkanox 4060 highlights LANXESS’ commitment to the “Safe and Sustainable by Design” principle. The active ingredient CCPD was selected from the outset with the goal of improving the environmental profile, taking into account degradability, bioaccumulation, aquatic toxicity, and regulatory compliance. The product is thus tailored to the growing demands of tire manufacturers, who must future-proof their supply chains in light of increasingly stringent environmental regulations.

For more information on Vulkanox 4060 and Rhein Chemie’s product portfolio, please visit https://lanxess.com/en/products/products/t/trial-product-vulkanox-4060.