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According to European Rubber Journal magazine’s article, the recovered carbon black (rCB) industry will require high levels of support and cooperation to fulfil on its potential to greatly decrease the environmental impact of the tire & rubber industry. In a report, Martin von Wolfersdorf – a renown carbon black expert from Berlin – lists a number of "mega challenges" that the still-developing business must overcome. Von Wolfersdorf estimated the average capacity of furnace processing plants in the EU at roughly 113 kilotons per annum (ktpa) in 2021 in a report presented* at the Tire Technology Expo 2023 conference.

Pyrum Innovations AG (Pyrum), a pioneer in the sustainable recycling of end-of-life tires (ELT) based on its patented pyrolysis technology, has signed a contract with premium tire manufacturer Continental for the supply of recovered carbon black (rCB). With the conclusion of the contract, there are now long-term serial supply contracts for all of Pyrum's core products, in addition to the contract for the supply of pyrolysis oil to BASF SE. Pascal Klein, CEO of Pyrum Innovations AG: “The long-term supply contract is a huge step for our company. We have now concluded serial supply contracts for all core products. As with our pyrolysis oil, the demand for our rCB is much greater than we can currently meet. Therefore, we will expand our production capacities in the next few years and expect to triple our capacities already this year with the commissioning of production lines II and III at our site in Dillingen.

Just in February 2023, the Joint Research Council (JRC) of the European Commission [1] published their study results on the environmental and economic factors of chemical recycling (pyrolysis) and energy recovery of end-of-life tires (ELT). The result of this study in advance: chemical recycling via ELT pyrolysis - including mechanical recycling for feedstock processing - is a more sustainable option for managing ELTs than energy recovery via incineration. Revisiting a decades-old knowledge Already in 2010, a much-cited Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) found pyrolysis to be the most eco-effective ELT treatment technology, followed by dynamic devulcanization and ambient grinding. [2] These results were confirmed in 2015 by a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) study showing that substituting primary resources with pyrolysis products from ELTs provides significant environmental savings. [3]

Pyrum Innovations AG (Pyrum) – a pioneer in the sustainable recycling of end-of-life tires (ELT) based on its patented pyrolysis technology – has received the ISO 14001 certification for its environmental management system following a comprehensive audit. As a result, the company now meets all the important criteria for being allowed to supply its recovered carbon black (rCB) to the automotive industry. The rCB is used in the tire industry for the production of new tires, as well as in the plastics and electrical industries. Pyrum had previously received ISO 9001 certification for its quality management system and silver status in the EcoVadis sustainability ranking. A year ago, Pyrum also signed a development agreement with premium tire manufacturer Continental to produce high quality recovered carbon black for Continental's tire production. The final hurdle has now been cleared with ISO 14001 certification.

Scandinavian Enviro Systems (Enviro) and Antin Infrastructure Partners (Antin) announced to have established a joint venture (JV) in order to, based on Enviro's technology, create a large-scale tire recycling group. The JV plans to establish plants across Europe with a total capacity of up to one million tons of end-of-life tires recycled annually by 2030. The JV partners have agreed on a plan for the financing of the new plant expansion. Antin, a leading private equity firm focused on infrastructure, will finance the initial investments.

Cabot Corporation (NYSE: CBT) announced the launch of EVOLVE™ Sustainable Solutions, a new technology platform for advancing sustainable reinforcing carbons. Cabot’s ambition through this technology platform is to develop products that offer sustainable content with reliable performance at industrial scale by leveraging circular value chains and materials recovered from end-of-life tires, and/or renewable and bio-based materials, and/or processes that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Resulting from these efforts, Cabot has launched two new products which will be sold as the company’s first-ever International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC PLUS) certified solutions.

Life for Tyres (L4T) – a busines group specialised in the conversion of end-of-life tires into advanced biofuel feedstock and high quality secondary raw materials –announced the opening of its first plant in Puertollano (Spain). The plant upcycles end-of-life tires (ELTs) into high quality secondary commodities, such as advanced biofuel feedstock, recovered carbon black and scrap steel, using a cutting-edge and proprietary technology. With an investment of 33 million euros and an annual processing of 27,000 tons of waste tires, the plant is the largest and most advanced ever built in Europe. The plant's inauguration is the result of more than 10 years of research, industrial testing and operational improvements, and represents a significant milestone for L4T while bringing highly promising new upcycling opportunities for the tire industry. Using proprietary technology developed in partnership with CURTI Group and protected by five patents, the plant produces high-quality end-products, which include advanced biofuel feedstock and circular depolymerization oil, both certified by the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC).

Building on the success of last edition of summit, ACI announced that the 3rd European Carbon Black Summit will take place on 14th on 15th June 2023 in Frankfurt, Germany. To register for the Summit, ACI offers a special 15% discount up until 6 weeks prior to the event and 10% after that until the event's date to all Weibold’s subsribers available via the promo code “CCBe3MKTWeibold”. For further information or to register your attendance contact Rohan Baryah on rbaryah@acieu.net or +48 61 646 7022 quoting the promo code. About the Summit Carbon Black (CB) demand is forecasted to increase, and addressing this increase will be very challenging as the war in Ukraine has already caused a big gap in the supply of virgin carbon black. Some of the experts from this field say that shortage of supply of CB goes up to 40% compared to the years before the war. The main focus of this summit will be to address these issues. With key topics such as CB market overview, improving sustainability in the industry, achieving superiority in supply chain and others we will try to give answers to these pressing issues. Focus will be also on improving standardisation in recovered CB as well as problems with calculating life cycle of tires.

Following on from last years' hugely successful event, Smithers have announced Recovered Carbon Black Conference plans to travel to Barcelona on the 7-8 November 2023. About the Recovered Carbon Black Conference. Recognized within the industry as an essential platform for experts and innovators, the programme offers a 360-degree perspective of the recovered carbon black market, with key industry leaders from across the globe sharing their expertise, case studies and latest findings. The Recovered Carbon Black Conference provided a much-needed platform for experts and innovators, who research, develop and commercialise recovered carbon black to stay updated on the latest market developments, challenges and opportunities.