SAN FRANCISCO — NASA scientists aboard the International Space Station will conduct experiments later this year on Goodyear's behalf to see how the station's microgravity environment might affect the formation of silica particles.
Goodyear said it hopes the experiments will help its engineers and scientists "determine if further investigation of unique forms of precipitated silica should be considered in tires."
Goodyear announced the agreement with NASA during the ISS Research and Development Conference taking place in San Francisco.
The company said recent academic experiments in microgravity conditions "have demonstrated the ability to generate unique morphologies that could show potential in delivering higher performance products."
Any breakthrough associated with the Goodyear investigation on the space station "could lead to improvements in fuel efficiency and other performance factors," the company said.