Use of a wax-containing product from sunflower oil production waste in elastomeric compositions

To expand the range of ingredients based on renewable biological raw materials and enhance environmental protection, the effectiveness of the OS Wax product in elastomeric compositions was investigated. This product is derived from the waste generated during the winterization stage of sunflower oil production and, according to differential thermal analysis and IR spectroscopy, is a thermostable, non-volatile, long-chain saturated ester. It was found that incorporating 1.0–2.0 phr of OS Wax as a processing additive in elastomeric compositions for tire manufacturing initiates and enhances the sulfur vulcanization process, reduces heat generation, and positively influences the Payne effect due to its structure and the reduction of the effective activation energy of sulfur vulcanization. At the same time, the dynamic and physical-mechanical properties of the rubber remain comparable to those prepared with petrochemical microwaxes of the SVOZ-75 U grade.