News: Tire Recycling & Pyrolysis

Tyre Stewardship Australia (TSA) reports that it will no longer be accepting applications from new entities seeking accreditation for the baling of whole end-of-life tyres for export. According to the statement, TSA makes this decision in light of the recent announcement made by the Council of Australian Government (COAG) to ban the export of whole baled tyres. TSA highlights that this action is intended to assist current accredited organisations transition from baling whole tyres for export to other processing methodologies.

A team of researchers at the National University of Singapore (NUS) reports about achieving a major technological breakthrough by converting end-of-life tires into super-light aerogels that have a wide range of applications. This is the first time that aerogels are made from end-of-life tires, the University reports. The new rubber aerogels demonstrate remarkable properties — they are extremely light, highly absorbent, very durable, and they are also very efficient at trapping heat and sound.

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Crude oil prices are testing sub $20 territory, some analysts predict further decreases. This puts immense pressures on tire pyrolysis operators who depend on fuel oil sales as their main source of revenue. Experts at Weibold have engineered a cost effective upgrade program for batch reactors that will: • convert your reactor to continuous processing • add heat cycles to improve output and separation • allow you to keep processing the same feedstock • increase capacity 3 - 4 fold • reduce energy costs

A trial organised by Transport for Victoria saw the introduction of OLEXOCRUMB®, the most recent product innovation from Puma Energy’s Global Bitumen Technology Centre in Altona, Victoria (Australia). The new asphalt binder was trialled in close collaboration with Boral Asphalt, as part of the Boral/Puma technology program. The company reports that OLEXOCRUMB® was specifically formulated to comply with existing Australian roads polymer modified binders (PMB) specifications.

The association reports that the world consumption of NR fell 19.6%, year-over-year, during the first quarter of 2020, as per the preliminary estimates and forecasts of individual countries. The consumption anticipated during the second quarter is down 1.5% compared with the same quarter a year ago. At the same time, the world production of NR increased by 1.8%, year-over-year, during the first quarter of 2020, according to preliminary estimates and forecasts of individual countries. The production anticipated during the second quarter is up 3.6% compared with the same quarter a year ago.

In the end of this article we make an estimation of a possible annual market size of recovered carbon black, modestly assuming virgin carbon black substitution rate at 20%. Hint: numbers suggest that recovered carbon black production is a profitable business rich in opportunities. Traditionally Carbon Black (CB) has been used as both a reinforcing agent and filler in automobile tires. Along with better understanding of CB’s unique properties as a material, it is presently used in a much wider range of applications across a large variety of products – car tires, conveyor belts, inks, plastic pipes, rubber mats, shoe soles and so forth. Virgin CB contains only trace amounts of impurities and carbon content is very close to 100%.

Logan City Council in Queensland, Australia, reports that is has teamed with Tyre Stewardship Australia (TSA) to conduct trials of a new eco-friendly road surface. According to Logan City Council, the surface is a combination of recycled end-of-life tyres and reclaimed asphalt. Installation of the new surface on Lagoon Road, Carbrook is scheduled for this April. TSA has committed $150,000 to the trial and additional laboratory testing, which aims to prove that the new surface will be as good as, or better than, standard road sealing. Logan City Council Director of Road Water Infrastructure Daryl Ross pinpoints Council is always looking at innovative ways to deliver better roads.

In April 2020, Weibold is hosting online webinars designed for anyone interested in tire recycling and pyrolysis business. This month, our three webinars will cover not only introductory topics, but also will help established pyrolysis companies focused on recovered carbon black, who already operate on the market and would like to strengthen its business positions. Special topic: Recovered carbon black markets (April 22, 2020) One of the webinars hosted by Weibold will be devoted to recovered carbon black (rCB) markets, where Weibold’s special guest, Martin von Wolfersdorff, will be the speaker. Martin von Wolfersdorff is a world-class expert in pyrolysis and recovered carbon black as well as marketing of specialty chemical materials. He is deeply involved in the industry, serves one of the organizers of the first global conference on recovered carbon black and has been supporting multinational companies in the tire pyrolysis sector, the tire industry, tire trade organizations, rubber and the plastics industries.