News: Tire Recycling & Pyrolysis

The K show in Germany city of Düsseldorf set October 16-23 will see Evonik Industries AG exhibit its patented rubber additive, Vestenamer, that allows transforming waste tires into products that can be applied to construct roads. The company’s additive makes the process of transforming waste tires into rubber powder that can be used in asphalt cost-efficient; this Evonik’s innovation is used in combination with road construction asphalt as it can improve the quality, thus extending the life of roads and boosting their durability preventing wearing off.

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The 17th China International Tire Expo is inviting guests to participate in the events set 19-21 August at Shanghai World Expo Exhibition & Convention Centre. According to the organizers, more than 360 exhibitors will show their products at the venue. It is anticipated that over 120,000 attendees will visit the expo and will get a chance to find out more about merchandise and services. A portion of topics at the form will be devoted to tire recycling and tire pyrolysis.

The port of Danish Nyborg will host a tire pyrolysis facility that will be able to produce over 9,000 tons of recovered carbon black annually through recycling of some 30,000 tons of scrap tires per year. This project is seen as a major step made to advance circular business model in Denmark. The ambitious plan is to be carried out by the Danish tire pyrolysis operator Elysium Nordic.

There is a potential risk that application of <5mm crumb rubber infill in artificial sports surfaces like synthetic turf will be banned due to an ongoing probe by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). This claim was reinforced by CEO at the European Tyre & Rubber Manufacturers Association (ETRMA). The potential ban may negatively impact tire recycling’s commercial segment given that significant amount of crumb rubber recovered from old tires is used to produce sport surfaces and rubber infill.

The Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) released Natural Rubber Trends & Statistics for April 2019. The total volume of natural rubber (NR) produced in the world amounted to 3.954 million tonnes during the first four months of 2019. It fell 5.1% from 4.165 million tonnes recorded during the same period in previous year. The world consumption of NR have improved during this reference period. It grew 1.0%, year-to-year, from 4.544 million tonnes to 4.591 million tonnes.

A new website that seeks to raise awareness to tire-originated microplastics, road wear particles (TRWP) and their detriment to ecology and human wellbeing has been launched by The European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers’ Association (ETRMA). The website also highlights a study by the ETRMA-launched TRWP platform that presented its conclusions earlier this June. The highlight of the study is the finding that 2-5% of particles generated on roads can reach estuaries.

Two innovative tire projects were presented at the Tyre Recovery Association’s (TRA) annual Recycling Forum Day in Warwick, the UK, on the 18th of June which was attended by over 90 delegates, including representatives of the Environment Agency and Scottish Environment Agency. The event addressed Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and the current tire recovery program.

A global producer of synthetic rubber Trinseo believes that styrene which can be processed out of plastic waste can be reused in tire manufacturing; however, it is still unclear how the industry could switch from a linear production reaching a more sustainable approach like circular economy. This concern was voiced by Trinseo’s tech and innovation director Sandra Hofmann during Future Tire Conference 2019 in Germany’s Cologne earlier this month. She explained that currently there is an access to a stream of recycled styrene that could be used in packaging, or, alternatively, be upcycled in tires and SSBR (solution-styrene butadiene rubber).