Natural Rubber vs. Styrene-Butadiene Rubber: Key Differences Explained

What are the key differences between natural rubber (NR) and styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR)?
– SBR resists weather, water and heat a little bit better than NR.
– SBR has worse mechanical properties and is more expensive than NR since SBR is synthetic rubber.

You can blend 2 of these rubbers together to get all the good stuff. Since SBR has worse mechanical properties than NR, it plays the role of “erasers”. Meaning, the blended rubber compound has better tire-road friction compared to using only NR for tire production.