News: Tire Recycling & Pyrolysis

Rema Tip Top is a Germany-based global system provider of services and products in the field of conveying and processing technology as well as for tire repairs. The company has a global service network and offers a wide range of polymer products, rubber linings and coatings for industry and the automotive sector. For Rema Tip Top, there are hardly any technical or economic limits to a tire repair. A typical case, which occurs almost daily in repair shops: A car owner has driven into a screw or other sharp object and the tire thus has a typical puncture injury in the tread. This damage can be repaired. But with a residual profile of 50%, many vehicle owners are rather skeptical and tend to replace the tires.

Large industrial companies are involved at a crucial point in the process of sustainable tire recycling. AZUR network coordinator Christina Guth welcomes the joining of Zeppelin Systems GmbH at the turn of the year: "With the Zeppelin systems, the tire recycling cycle is efficiently closed." Zeppelin is one of the world's leading system manufacturers that specializes in the development of components and plants for the handling (storage, conveying, mixing, dosing and weighing) of high-quality bulk materials. Zeppelin Systems has many years of experience in blending plants and also covers all processes in the rubber and tire industry down to the smallest detail.

Researchers at the University of Vienna's Centre for Microbiology and Environmental Sciences have now demonstrated that chemicals released from tires do, in fact, enter the food stream and may be consumed along with Quinone 6PPD which was defined as a toxin that impacts Coho Salmon. Their examinations of the impacts of contaminants from tire wear on lettuce revealed that: The lettuce absorbed all the chemicals investigated, some of which were quite hazardous. It will take further research to determine how this mechanism truly occurs in arable soils. An international publication called Environmental Science & Technology has officially published the report.

Australian surf brand Rip Curl has started an initiative to recycle used wetsuits in collaboration with TerraCycle, private U.S.-based recycling business headquartered in Trenton, New Jersey. Old and useless surfing wetsuits will be recycled as part of the Recycle Your Wetsuit program so that the materials obtained can be used to create soft rubber playground matting. In 2021, the program was initially introduced in Australia, and since then, it has also been promoted in the United States, France, Portugal, and Spain. Surfers in Australia have the option to recycle any surfing wetsuit at authorized stores either in-person or via mail. The Recycle Your Wetsuit program has now been expanded to reduce the impact of wetsuit waste.

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 rbayrah@acieu.net or +48 61 646 7022 quoting the promo code.

Pyrum Innovations AG (Pyrum), a pioneer in the sustainable recycling of end-of-life tires (ELT) based on its patented pyrolysis technology, and Polyfuels Group AB intend to jointly build and operate four pyrolysis plants as part of a joint venture. Both companies have agreed on this in a letter of intent (LOI). The plants will be based on Pyrum technology and will be realised by Circular Tires AS, a wholly owned subsidiary of Polyfuels. Polyfuels Group AB is engaged in the collection and recycling of plastics, mixed plastics – both from industry and consumers - and chemical recycling projects with industrial partners.

European Commission asks the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) to assess potential risks in playgrounds. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in synthetic turf infill materials will be reviewed for potential risks by ECHA. The European Commission (EC) ordered the agency to analyze any dangers to children in a letter dated January 6 to ECHA executive director Sharon McGuinness. The study's scope includes loose mulches and granulated PAHs used in playgrounds, gardens and landscaping. According to the EC, the assessment's goal is to determine if the respective applicable concentration limits for eight PAHs found in infill materials are effective.

On March 21 – 23, 2023, Robert Weibold – the founder and managing director of Weibold – will attend the Tire Technology Expo 2023 in Hannover. Tire Technology Expo Conference brings together leading industry figures for three days of presentations, discussions and networking on the latest developments in tire manufacturing, scientific advances, sustainability and the global tire business. Show founder Tony Robinson says, “Thirty years after we launched the magazine, we have the privilege of running this expo for the 22nd time – and I think its significance is greater than ever. The complexities of the pandemic and its management in China have seen the exhibitions industry there come to a standstill for the last two years, wiping out one of the other annual opportunities for companies to present their technologies.”

In its latest press release, EuRIC reported that Europe’s recycling industries expressed dismay at the European Parliament’s adoption of current waste shipment proposals citing major inconsistencies undermining the trade of recycled materials. While the establishment of mandatory recycled content targets for plastics should be applauded, the failure to consider targets for metals and paper is a significant omission that will erode demand and subsequently green investment in new and upscaled recycling facilities in Europe. However, European recyclers were encouraged by the European Parliament’s support of existing proposals that facilitate the export of recycled materials within the EU, such as establishing English as the common language or extended time limits for receiving shipments.