Search Results

The Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) has released the Monthly Natural Rubber Statistical Report for March 2023, which updates the outlook for the global natural rubber market based on the latest International Monetary Fund (IMF) projections. The report states that global production of natural rubber is expected to grow by 2.7% to reach 14.916 million tons, while global demand is expected to contract by 0.4% to 14.912 million tons. In March, global natural rubber production decreased by 26.1% to 967,000 tons compared to the previous month, while global demand is estimated to increase by 7.9% to 1.306 million tons during the same period.

Apollo Tyres, the international tire manufacturer, is readying itself for sustainable mobility solutions. The company has now developed passenger vehicle tires with 75% sustainable materials. Apollo’s new sustainable product comprises many featured compounding ingredients in different components of the tires, including bio-based and recycled materials. The sustainable natural rubber, used in these tires, have been sourced from suppliers who have public commitments to sourcing and/or traceable to specific plantations, in accordance with the company’s sustainable natural rubber policy.

Bridgestone Americas (Bridgestone) announced that it has produced a run of demonstration tires made with 75% recycled and renewable materials, including synthetic rubber made with recycled plastics and natural rubber harvested from desert shrubs grown domestically, in the Arizona desert. The company has completed production of 200 demonstration tires and is pursuing joint evaluation with automakers for use on the next generation of electrified SUVs and crossovers (CUVs). The company’s relentless commitment to its goal of using 100% sustainable materials in its products by 2050 was underscored in remarks by Bridgestone Global CEO, Shuichi Ishibashi, during a February 16 briefing with media and industry analysts in Tokyo where Bridgestone also announced that it is pursuing a tire design utilizing 90% recycled and renewable materials for passenger cars.

Zeppelin Systems entered into another important partnership in the mechanical recycling sector on February 7, 2023. The Italian Technology group formed by RubberJet and Vertech specialized in recycling particularly large scrap tires, for example from trucks and construction and mining machinery. High-quality rubber recyclates are made from scrap tires measuring up to four meters in size, which can later be used to manufacture new tires. According to Zeppelin Systems, the patented and proprietary method is 100% environmentally friendly. According to current figures from the AZuR network (innovation forum for scrap tire recycling, of which Zeppelin Systems is a member), around 3.5 million tons of scrap tires are generated in Europe each year. In Germany alone, around 550,000 tons of scrap tires were accrued in 2021. If every scrap tire in Europe was recycled, around 2.45 million tons of CO2 emissions would be saved.

*** Webinar recording inside *** The webinar "Upgrading Tire Pyrolysis Oils for Fuels and Chemicals Applications" was held by Topsoe on February 28. The high participation (200+ attendees) shows that the tire pyrolysis industry is interested in innovative technology solutions for upgrading pyrolysis oil.

The tire engineers and material experts of Continental are silently revolutionizing the industry by planning to use only sustainable materials for tire production by 2050. Although the journey is long, the gradual selection of raw materials has already begun to give shape to the future tire construction. The list includes agricultural waste, such as ash from rice husks, dandelion rubber, and recycled rubber or PET bottles. Claus Petschick, Head of Sustainability at Continental Tires, is clear about Continental’s mission, saying, “Continental is on the road toward becoming the most progressive manufacturer in the tire industry in terms of sustainability. We aim to use 100 percent sustainable materials in our tire products by 2050 at the latest.” He adds, “Our innovative power enables us to break new and even more sustainable ground. This encompasses everything from the origin and sourcing of our materials through to the reuse and recycling of our tires.”

Enviro (Scandinavian Enviro Systems) is to begin delivering recovered pyrolysis oil as part of the order from Preem that was announced in November of last year. Preem will use the oil as a raw material for production tests and the order value is estimated at approximately MSEK 2. Through production testing, Preem will determine how suitable the oil is for the production of different biofuels. These tests will take place at Preem’s refinery in Lysekil, which has already been granted a permit to conduct production tests of pyrolysis oil. This oil will be produced at Enviro’s plant in Åsensbruk where Enviro extracts for example oil from end-of-life vehicle tires using its proprietary and patented recycling technology.

The Yokohama Rubber Co. announced that it will supply ADVAN racing tires with a sustainable material content as the control tire for the Japanese Super Formula Championship from the 2023 season. The company has completed development of tires for use in dry conditions and will continue developing tires for wet conditions with the aim of supplying them from 2023. The dry condition tires being supplied by Yokohama Rubber use natural rubber and various naturally derived compounding agents including oil produced from oil palm nuts and orange peels, as well as recycled iron, rubber recycled from waste tires, and synthetic rubber produced using the mass balance method – a method that allows you to label a commercial product as a biomass-derived product based on the volume of biomass-derived raw materials used during the process of turning raw materials into final products and the distribution process.

Murfitts Industries, the UK’s leading tire recycling and reprocessing company, and ETIA announced that the two companies intend to form a unique partnership delivering commercial scale solutions for recycling of end-of-life tires to recover their valuable raw material and energy content. Murfitts Industries has been working with ETIA for a number of years and the proposed joint venture will build on that strong relationship. ETIA is a French engineering group and part of Vow ASA, an international technology company listed in Norway.