Aloft Invests in Micronized Rubber

Aloft, a Portugal-based company specializing in technical footwear design, development and manufacturing, is investing in new solutions such as micronized rubber.

Aloft CEO Pedro Castro stated, "As part of the BioShoes4all project, Aloft has worked on and developed a range of solutions focused on sustainability, which is a fundamental need in terms of regulatory development and market demand, with clear growth potential. In the rubber sector, the inclusion of micronized rubber produced from waste as part of the manufacturing process of rubber (SBR or NBR) and/or polyurethane (PU) soles/components for footwear has been among the company's objectives due to the need to develop a solution that would eliminate the environmental impact of these materials."

Castro emphasized that in the injection molding sector, "to produce more sustainable products without compromising on comfort and performance, Aloft has focused on the inert gas physical expansion process with the aim of producing lighter products using fewer material resources. As a result, a series of mold designs, material types and process conditions have been investigated to better understand the impact and potential in specific projects."

According to Pedro Castro, "the transformation of rubber waste into a secondary raw material through the micronization process facilitates its incorporation into the polymer matrix. The powdered material can be more easily used in the manufacturing process without significantly affecting the technical/functional criteria of the conventional material." Castro emphasized that this is "an extremely important point" because "Aloft operates on a large scale in the technical and performance footwear sector. Based on economic and energy analysis, we believe this is the most balanced process compared to chemical recycling processes.

Source: https://bioshoesforall.pt/aloft-invests-in-micronized-rubber/