SRI develops synchrotron radiation technique for measuring rubber

Tokyo, Japan – Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd. announce that it, in collaboration mainly with Makina Saito, Associate Professor at Tohoku University; Takaki Hatsui, Group Director at RIKEN; and Yoshitaka Yoda, Senior Scientist at the Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute, has developed a new synchrotron radiation technique capable of measuring atomic, molecular, and nanostructure motion in a wide time domain including 1 nanosecond. Through this study, they will pursue the development of tires with high strength and excellent wear resistance.

Sumitomo Rubber Industries has conducted a joint study aimed at improving the wear resistance of tires with Associate Professor Makina Saito of Tohoku University. With the conventional measuring technique, they were only able to measure atomic/molecular motion in rubber in a time domain of 10 to 1000 nanoseconds. To improve wear resistance, they needed to examine atomic/molecular motion in rubber more closely in a shorter time domain.

The new synchrotron radiation technique is capable of measuring 0.1- to 100-nanosecond motion. Combining the innovative technique with conventional processes has made it possible to measure atomic or molecular motion in a wide time domain. It has been developed using SPring-81, a large synchrotron radiation facility, for the first time. Furthermore, the use of CITIUS2, the latest two-dimensional x-ray camera, has enabled them to measure not only the timescale of a moving object but its spatial scale at the same time. They succeeded in measuring molecular chain motion in rubber in a wide time domain of 0.1 to 100 nanoseconds by applying the developed technique to rubber material (an article published in academic journal Physical Review Letters).

This study is carried out under CREST (Core Research for Evolutionary Science and Technology), one of the Strategic Basic Research Programs administered by the Japan Science and Technology Agency with the aim of promoting unique and world-class studies.