News: Tire Recycling & Pyrolysis

Read about the most important events and updates in the tire recycling and pyrolysis industry! Subscribe for our newsletter today! Weibold offers comprehensive consulting services in the field of tire recycling and tire pyrolysis. Learn how Weibold's Market Researches can help you successfully launch and upgrade your business!

On behalf of Waverly Carbon (UK) we seek high quality pyrolysis char (raw rCB) as the business looks to ramp up capacity to meet demand. Demand for finished rCB is growing across rubber, plastics and inks and coatings, and Waverly Carbon is keen to bring on new suppliers to increase output. It is essential that suppliers meet its specification requirements for clean and consistent pyrolysis char. Material must be low volatile, steel free and with stable ash content. Waverly Carbon is willing to provide offtake agreements for 100-200 tonnes per month. Detailed specification can be shared on request.

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.

TNU (Tratamiento Neumáticos Usados) – a Spanish EPR agency for end-of-life tires – states that to manufacture a new tire, 1,950 litres of water are needed and only 878 litres for a retreaded tire, saving 45% of water. TNU issued a press release to acknowledge World Water Day on March 22, a date that seeks to raise awareness about the water crisis that our planet is suffering and that has led to droughts around the world. In addition, it also aims to remind us of the need for millions of people to access drinking water. Between 2,000 and 3,000 million people suffer from water scarcity in the world, a problem that will worsen in the coming decades, especially in cities, according to UN data.

On behalf of our Clients, we seek partners to establish end-of-life tire pyrolysis facilities in Europe. Our Clients have over a decade of successful commercial experience globally in the end-of-life tire recycling industry. Joint Venture preferred.

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.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently issued a request for information (RFI) to better understand the key opportunities and challenges associated with increased material circularity. This RFI aims to inform DOE’s upcoming efforts to advance circular economy technologies and systems in the United States. Developing pathways that keep materials in use beyond a single lifecycle is critical to decarbonizing the U.S. economy and setting the nation on the path to achieving the Biden Administration’s clean energy goals of a 100% clean electrical grid by 2035 and net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050. The transition to a circular economy represents a strategic opportunity for the United States to pioneer new technologies with international demand and to strengthen domestic supply chains ranging from critical materials to commodities.

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.