The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras has partnered with JK Fenner (India) Limited for research and development of a biodegradable alternative to elastomers or rubber products used in the production of various utilitarian items. JK Fenner is providing support for this research project as part of its CSR initiatives.
This research is vital as although natural rubber is biodegradable, the finished product is slow to biodegrade due to the presence of non-degradable chemical units that function as molecular bridges. Most synthetic rubbers are also not biodegradable due to their structural feature, which consists of carbon-carbon single bonds in the backbone. Hence, the finished rubber product after its service life remains without much structural degradation for a long period of time.
An IIT Madras research team headed by Prof R Dhamodharan, Department of Chemistry, IIT Madras, aims to tackle this issue by research and development of effective, biodegradable, molecular bridges as an alternative, through their research.
Speaking about this CSR Partnership with IIT Madras, Nagaraju Srirama President and Director, JK Fenner (India) Limited, said, “JK Fenner India Limited is happy to partner with IIT Madras, the premier research institute in the country for developing the next generation rubber which is going to be biodegradable and environment- friendly. This research will set a new direction in the rubber industry (belts/hoses) which will be environmentally friendly and will support our initiative towards a sustainable future.”
Elaborating on the scope of their research, Principal Investigator Prof R Dhamodharan, Department of Chemistry, IIT Madras, said, “The structure of the polymer to address these issues should be amenable to the ‘standard curing procedure’ established in the rubber industry. The polymer as well as the ‘crosslinker’ or the ‘bridge molecule’ used in the curing should also be designed with structural features that would make it suitable for biodegradation.”
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