ENSO - Sustainable, Low-Emission Tyres for Improved Air Quality
Lead Participant:
ENSO TYRES LTD
Abstract
ENSO Tyres Ltd (ENSO), hosted by the Jaguar Land Rover InMotion Ventures Incubator in London, is spearheading a consortium of industry leading organisations including Renault, ARRIVAL, Gnewt, E-Car Club, Heathrow Airport, TARRC, Gnosys and Emissions Analytics, seeking to disrupt the tyre manufacturing industry.
The consortium proposes to develop an innovative range of tyres that align with the unique characteristics of Electric Vehicles (EVs) to deliver improved EV performance whilst simultaneously reducing the environmental and air quality impact of tyre wear. ENSO’s tyres will be made from advanced raw materials that are environmentally friendly, greatly reducing the quantity and toxicity of harmful particulate matter (PM) emissions that current tyres release.
This two-stage project (Phase 1 & 2) will directly target tyre emissions, one of the four non-exhaust emission sources of PM (others being: brake wear, re-suspension and road surface wear), utilising innovative compound development techniques and sustainable materials. Tyres are one of the largest contributors to traffic emissions, releasing significant quantities of toxic PM, causing harm to both the environment and human health. In addition, the project will deliver methodology for measuring tyre wear under real-world conditions addressing the shortcomings of laboratory-only approaches and delivering a standard for measuring tyre emissions.
ENSO’s mission is to significantly reduce harmful chemicals in the environment by delivering cleaner and more energy-efficient mobility. The company was founded to drive innovation in the tyre industry by developing disruptive products to fill underserved market niches. ENSO’s tyres have been developed following extensive research, development and testing of novel materials leading to successful prototype testing with Renault. The proposed project will build on this development to refine ENSO’s innovative tyre technology with a focus on increasing tyre durability to reduce PM emissions and improve air quality. ENSO’s unique business model, supports this innovation and incentivises wide scale adoption of its tyres, providing a strong value proposition and minimising the environmental impacts.
This Phase 1 feasibility study will deliver outputs required to implement a Phase 2 project, including finalising testing methodology to measure tyre emissions. The Phase 2 project will see the further development and real-world testing of ENSO’s high-durability tyres with numerous leading EV partners, delivering tyres with significantly reduced emissions, both in terms of PM volume and toxicity. The EV market is the fastest growing automotive niche; forecast to reach ~10m plug-in vehicles worldwide by 2021, creating an addressable tyre market worth £5bn; a significant opportunity for suppliers who can dynamically react to the market opportunity.
The consortium proposes to develop an innovative range of tyres that align with the unique characteristics of Electric Vehicles (EVs) to deliver improved EV performance whilst simultaneously reducing the environmental and air quality impact of tyre wear. ENSO’s tyres will be made from advanced raw materials that are environmentally friendly, greatly reducing the quantity and toxicity of harmful particulate matter (PM) emissions that current tyres release.
This two-stage project (Phase 1 & 2) will directly target tyre emissions, one of the four non-exhaust emission sources of PM (others being: brake wear, re-suspension and road surface wear), utilising innovative compound development techniques and sustainable materials. Tyres are one of the largest contributors to traffic emissions, releasing significant quantities of toxic PM, causing harm to both the environment and human health. In addition, the project will deliver methodology for measuring tyre wear under real-world conditions addressing the shortcomings of laboratory-only approaches and delivering a standard for measuring tyre emissions.
ENSO’s mission is to significantly reduce harmful chemicals in the environment by delivering cleaner and more energy-efficient mobility. The company was founded to drive innovation in the tyre industry by developing disruptive products to fill underserved market niches. ENSO’s tyres have been developed following extensive research, development and testing of novel materials leading to successful prototype testing with Renault. The proposed project will build on this development to refine ENSO’s innovative tyre technology with a focus on increasing tyre durability to reduce PM emissions and improve air quality. ENSO’s unique business model, supports this innovation and incentivises wide scale adoption of its tyres, providing a strong value proposition and minimising the environmental impacts.
This Phase 1 feasibility study will deliver outputs required to implement a Phase 2 project, including finalising testing methodology to measure tyre emissions. The Phase 2 project will see the further development and real-world testing of ENSO’s high-durability tyres with numerous leading EV partners, delivering tyres with significantly reduced emissions, both in terms of PM volume and toxicity. The EV market is the fastest growing automotive niche; forecast to reach ~10m plug-in vehicles worldwide by 2021, creating an addressable tyre market worth £5bn; a significant opportunity for suppliers who can dynamically react to the market opportunity.
Lead Participant | Project Cost | Grant Offer |
|---|---|---|
| ENSO TYRES LTD | £49,555 | £ 49,555 |
People |
ORCID iD |
| Gunnlaugur Erlendsson (Project Manager) |