Green tire technology: Effect of rice husk derived nanocellulose (RHNC) in replacing carbon black (CB) in natural rubber (NR) compounding

•Type-I nanocellulose (∼45 nm) is synthesized from rice husk.•Carbon black (CB) is replaced with nanocellulose (RHNC) in natural rubber.•The mechanical & swelling properties of NRCB30 & NRCB25NC5 are comparable.•The tan δ at 60 °C is minimum for NRCB25NC5 which indicates low rolling resistance.•The synergistic use of CB and RHNC in NR is effective in developing green tires. The effect of replacing carbon black (CB) by rice husk derived type-I nanocellulose (RHNC) in natural rubber vulcanization is presented in this study. The synthesized RHNC was characterized using various analytical techniques like FTIR, XRD, SEM, TEM, DLS, TGA etc. The cure characteristics, mechanical, technological, thermal, barrier and dynamic mechanical properties of the composites were analysed. The mechanical properties of the NR composites containing 30 wt% of CB are comparable with the composite containing 25 wt% of CB and 5 wt% of RHNC. The DMA studies show that the loss tangent (tan δ) at 60 °C is lower for the composite containing 5 wt% of RHNC and 25 wt% CB compared to the composite containing 30 wt% CB. This shows that RHNC can impart low rolling resistance, which is a crucial parameter for green tire applications.