Patent ID: 8084517

Claim:
A process for forming a tire component comprising the steps of: (a) blending together an elastomer, a reinforcing filler comprising silica or a mixture thereof with carbon black, a silica dispersing aid comprising about 0.1 to about 15 phr of water-insoluble poly(vinyl acetate), a silica coupling agent, and a cure agent, to form a tire compound; (b) fabricating the tire compound into a tire component; and (c) vulcanizing the tire compound; wherein the blending comprises a masterbatch stage, a remill stage, and a final stage; and either: (1) a portion of the silica is added in a different stage than the silica dispersing aid; or (2) the polyvinyl acetate is added in the masterbatch stage, and the compound has a ML 1+4 viscosity that was reduced at each mixing stage compared to the ML 1+4 viscosity of a control compound that does not include polyvinyl acetate.