American Process Inc. (API) (Atlanta, GA) and Aditya Birla Group’s, Birla Carbon (Marietta, GA) recently signed a Joint Development Agreement to further efforts of combining carbon black and nanocellulose to improve the performance and sustainability of tires. According to a press release published today, the companies have began work with Birla Carbon® and BioPlus® nanocellulose to reduce rolling resistance of tires which could ultimately increase fuel efficiencies by 20%.

Kim Nelson, PhD, API’s VP of Nanocellulose remarks, “This partnership has many synergies including Birla Carbon’s technical expertise, rigorous and disciplined development program, and world-class research facility in Marietta, Georgia. Our ability to offer large-scale quantities of a variety of nanocellulose products with various particle sizes and surface chemistries also enhances the development process.”