Taraxacum Kok-Saghys as a Strong Candidate Alternative Natural Rubber Crop in Temperate Regions in the Case of Emergency

Abstract

Natural rubber (NR, cis-1,4-polyisoprene) used in over 50,000 products, has unique properties, which cannot be matched by synthetic rubber. Hevea brasiliensis Muell. Arg. is currently the only NR commercial source that is not secure because of Hevea tree diseases, increasing demand, high labor costs, price instability, trade politics, competition for land with other crops, and a deforestation ban preventing new H. brasiliensis acreage. Hence, alternative rubber-producing crops are required for increasing the geographic and biological diversity of NR production. The mechanical properties and molecular composition of Taraxacum kok-saghyz NR are nearly identical to those of H. brasiliensis NR. However, developing T. kok-saghyz as an industrial crop is faced with some problems. This plant can become a commercially viable rubber-producing crop by improving agronomic fitness, rubber yield, and extraction process efficiency. An efficient process should extract NR at a high yield without damaging its physical and mechanical properties. This chapter focuses on the potential ways to improve rubber production and extraction processes from T. kok-saghyz.