News: Tire Recycling & Pyrolysis

In the virtual information disclosure published by Scandinavian Enviro Systems (Enviro) on March 2, the company responded to questions on subjects that include the license agreement with Michelin. In the information disclosure, Enviro also reported on how the partnership with Michelin is relevant from a strategic perspective and what the company’s long-term plans are.

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Michelin – one of the world's leading tire manufacturers – says in its press release from February 23, 2021 that it is committed to making automotive tires 100% sustainable by 2050. This is an ambitious but realistic target for the Group, which positions itself as a leader in sustainable mobility. Appearances can be deceiving, the company says. This adage definitely applies to Michelin’s tires, which are high-technology products made of more than 200 components. They’re much more complex than they appear, which means that ensuring that all the tire’s components are sustainable presents a significant challenge.

Since it was founded in 1962, Maris, a manufacturer of co-rotating twin-screw extruders, has claimed one of the leading positions in the research of new state-of-the-art applications for its products. With the aim of providing its customers with the widest range of choices, every mechanical component of Maris’ extruders are entirely in-house manufactured. Maris says it’s one of the few companies in the world able to <b>customize its co-rotating twin-screw extruders according to its customers’ specific needs and this is true also when it comes to rubber devulcanization</b>. Rubber devulcanization is a selective breaking process of an elastomer S-S and C-S bonds, which produces only a limited degradation of the polymeric structure (C-C bond).

Today, tire recycling and cement industries are indeed intertwined. An abundance of scrap tires at specialized stockpiles, as well as well-organized tire collection systems and waste management plans, make it possible to (re)use precious rubber and create value out of waste. Tire-derived fuel (TDF) proves to be an alternative to fossil fuels used in cement production, mainly due to high calorific value of tire rubber and its low price. However, TDF emerged as a popular alternative to fossil fuels in cement production for yet another important reason – environment. Tire-derived fuel helps lower CO2 emissions and serves as a cleaner alternative compared to fossil fuels. Added to this, using scrap tires in cement production helps clean up vast scrap tire stockpiles, which otherwise pose threat to environment and which are often unsuitable as feedstock for tire recycling plants due to its exposure to radiation, sand or other contamination.

A Dutch investment portal “Invest in Holland” says that a Canada-based company Tyromer is now building a pilot factory in Arnhem to bring its circular rubber products to the European market. Specializing in the devulcanization of rubber from scrap tires, Tyromer will fine-tune and exhibit its recycling technology at its new Dutch facility in order to sell the process to third parties. The company is one of the first in the Netherlands to give this hard-to-process residual product a high-quality new life, making it a valuable addition to the Dutch circular economy.

The Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet is now accepting grant proposals for projects that promote the use of recycled Kentucky end-of-life tires. As reported by Kentucky Today, the Cabinet will provide grant funding for landscaping mulch projects, walking trails, poured-in-place playgrounds, sidewalks or other surfaces, horse trailer or stall mats, tree wells or other products utilizing recycled tires from Kentucky. Projects that are not eligible for grants include athletic field or loose crumb rubber playground applications, tire-derived aggregate, tire-derived fuel, rubber-modified asphalt or civil engineering projects.

India has recently approved the new vehicle scrapping and recycling policy. The new policy will serve to take old, polluting vehicles off the road and also improve sales of new vehicles that are much less polluting and come equipped with improved safety features. The move will undoubtedly lead to the increase in end-of-life tire available on the market and may affect capacities of established tire recycling operators in India.

In May 2019, Carbon Craft Design launched its first carbon tile production. The manufacturing of the carbon tiles is a three-step process. First, carbon is collected from tire pyrolysis based factories, which is then processed at a facility and finally converted into tiles at a manufacturing unit located in Morbi, Gujarat. The entire process of making these tiles consumes one-fifth of the energy required to make vitrified tiles and reduces air pollution by 30,000 liters of carbon for each tile made.