The wear resistance of zinc oxide whisker (ZnOw)/natural rubber-styrene butadiene rubber-butyl rubber (NR-SBR-BR) composites showed that a tetra-needle like ZnOw, which is treated by a coupling agent, improved the wear resistance of the rubber composites. The topography of the worn surfaces of the ZnOw/NR-SBR-BR composite was fractal, and the fractal dimension and abrasion loss decreased synchronously as the ZnOw content increased in the composites. (C) 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.