Dandelion Could be the Next Source of Sustainable Rubber

A group of researchers from the Ohio State University's College of Food, Agricultural & Environmental Sciences are growing a special kind of dandelion native from Kazakhstan to be used as a sustainable source of rubber in the United States.

The said dandelion is known by its scientific name Taraxacum kok-saghyz, but the researchers decided to call it Buckeye Gold. Unlike other wild dandelions growing in the United States, Buckeye Gold is capable of producing rubber that has nearly identical quality and performance as those produced from Hevea rubber trees grown in South East Asia.

According to a press release from American Chemical Society, the roots of Buckeye Gold contains 10 to 15 percent natural rubber. Liquid latex rubber and rubber solids were extracted from the roots of Buckeye Gold in a processing plant using water.

Dandelions have great potential to be a sustainable source of rubber in the U.S. Unlike rubber trees that are growing in Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, Buckeye Gold does not take years to grow. Because rubber trees takes a long time to mature, producers are having a hard time adapting to the increasing demands of rubber.

However, researchers noted that it will take some time before dandelion can be used as an alternative source of rubber. Researchers are trying to find a way to modify Buckeye Gold to increase its rubber content. They also want to synthesize the weed to be able to withstand weed and pest control measures and resist diseases and cross-pollination with native plants.

Researchers also need to show to farmers that they could profit in planting dandelions. Additional uses for other parts of the dandelion are also being studied to reduce waste being produced by rubber production.

"There are embedded interests in the crops we already grow," Katrina Cornish, a researchers at Ohio State University and leading the study on dandelion rubber, told Chemical and Engineering News. "Without farmers growing it, there are not farmers lobbying for it."