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The chemical recycling of end-of-life tires (ELT) via state-of-the-art pyrolysis technologies does not only avoid greenhouse gas emissions compared to today’s conventional production processes, but it also increases the resource efficiency while closing the loop in the transition to a circular economy. However, civil organisations criticise the production of fuel through chemical recycling, sometimes mutilate the terminology, pointing to the associated environmental impacts, while they overlook the fact that modern ELT pyrolysis concepts are not geared towards the production of "fuels" (which, by the way, should not be defined as "recycling" but rather as less preferred "recovery" according to the EU waste hierarchy).

Despite hard efforts of the tire recycling and pyrolysis industry to develop new markets and increase recycling rates, recycled rubber based product markets demonstrate only moderate growth. To tackle the problem and allow thousands of tons of precious materials go back to consumer goods, numerous end-of-life tire management organizations, companies and research labs do their best to find new markets and develop innovative products out of scrap tire rubber.

Versalis, a chemical company owned by Eni, and one of the world’s leaders in the production and marketing of elastomers has signed an agreement with AGR, a company that owns technology for the devulcanization of post-consumer elastomers. Together, Versalis and AGR are going to develop technological innovations and new products and applications from recycled end-of-life tire rubber. Devulcanization is process of selectively breaking chemical bonds that transforms objects in solid rubber, usually granulated, into a workable and moldable form, ready to be reused in the production of new products, such as tires or gaskets.

The second AZuR colloquium at the TH Köln Gummersbach campus brought together 18 scientists to discuss innovative methods and possibilities for recycling end-of-life tires (ELTs). Scientists from various universities and institutes presented current studies and research projects in areas such as microwave-assisted devulcanization of rubber, ecosystem development for a circular tire replacement business, and the activation of rubber waste for secondary raw material production.

Zeppelin Systems, a plant engineering company based in Friedrichshafen and specializing in tire production and recycling, has formed a strategic partnership with Recykl Group, a Polish market leader in managing end-of-life tires. The partnership, aligned with the concept of an integrated circular economy, aims to improve the mechanical recycling of end-of-life tires and produce high-quality recyclates that can be directly integrated back into the production cycle for new tires. The partnership is expected to generate valuable synergetic effects in the development and marketing of technologies in the field of tire recycling.

The Australian federal and Western Australian Labor governments are co-investing AUD $44.1 million in nine recycling projects to enhance waste management across Perth and regional Western Australia. These projects will divert 143,000 tonnes of waste from landfills annually and create 246 jobs. Facilities will recycle plastics, tires, paper, and cardboard into new products, including high-quality plastic pipes. Key projects include a tire recycling and devulcanization plant to process 12,000 tonnes of off-the-road tires into reusable rubber materials.

Taking forward its commitment to sustainability, Indian tire manufacturer Apollo Tyres has partnered with Tyromer Inc, a leader in non-chemical devulcanization of end-of-life tires. Tyromer Inc, through their Indian associate, Tyromer India LLP, is committed to supplying recycled rubber material, produced using its environmentally sustainable processes, to Apollo Tyres. Announcing the partnership with Tyromer, P K Mohamed, Chief Advisor, R&D, Apollo Tyres Ltd, said “This partnership with Tyromer is a step towards achieving our sustainability goals, and it also enables us to honour our Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR).

According to Swedish Tyre Recycling (Svensk Däckåtervinning AB), the company has been working with balance since 1994, and this year marks their 30th anniversary. The company focuses on aligning society’s need for resources with the planet’s renewable capacity to promote a sustainable existence. This involves using existing resources for longer periods with minimal modification, particularly in areas where virgin extraction would have significant consequences.

The second Tyre Recycling Forum at The Tire Cologne, 9th – 12th June 2020, will be a two-day open conference with eight panels of key interest to the tyre recycling sector and the tyre and rubber market. The event will take place in Hall Nine, on the Wednesday 10th and Thursday 11th June, on the area dedicated to the Tyre Recycling Forum in Hall Nine of Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany.