
Tire makers race to turn dandelions into rubber - ximeng
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/20/us-dandelion-rubber-idUSKBN0GK0LN20140820
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zaroth
The article is claiming $3,000 per hectare per year under ideal conditions,
perhaps closer to 1/3rd that on a real farm.

But compare that to average revenue per hectare of closer to $300 / ha / year.
[1]

So when the farmers say, just tell me when I can start growing it, they aren't
kidding. Very interesting research.

[1] -
[http://www.savills.co.uk/research_articles/141565/142402-0](http://www.savills.co.uk/research_articles/141565/142402-0)

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gokhan
More details on research page:

[http://www.igb.fraunhofer.de/en/competences/molecular-
biotec...](http://www.igb.fraunhofer.de/en/competences/molecular-
biotechnology/industrial-biotechnology/rubber.html)

~~~
rmtew
Presumably, this is the quoted 60-year old but not cost effective process:
[http://www.google.com/patents/US2393035](http://www.google.com/patents/US2393035)

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mojoe
This was the part that surprised me the most:

"Passenger car tires need to have 10-40 percent natural rubber content to
allow them to stay flexible at low temperatures and to keep tiny cracks from
growing. Truck and aircraft tires need an even higher percentage."

I had always assumed that modern tires were completely synthetic. Very
interesting.

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gcb4
Japanese's tires in early 2000 were mostly made of orange peel oil.

wasn't a commercial success.

today one brand still has one line that supposedly sell in the usa but i can't
find it anywhere.

~~~
PublicEnemy111
Yokohama?
[http://www.yokohamatire.com/news/detail/1992](http://www.yokohamatire.com/news/detail/1992)

~~~
gcb4
yes. that's the one advertised but impossible to buy in the usa. i recall only
place i found it at the time had a 4x price hike over the advertised market
price.

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brokentone
Eerily similar to this Pushing Daisies episode: [http://pushing-
daisies.wikia.com/wiki/Dandy_Lion_SX](http://pushing-
daisies.wikia.com/wiki/Dandy_Lion_SX)

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netman21
I read once that Thomas Jefferson investigated raising milkweed, which also
contains a lot of latex. He wanted to disrupt the rubber tree industry.

