News: Tire Recycling & Pyrolysis

CM Shredders – one of the leading manufacturers of tire recycling equipment in the world based in the United States – tells about its most versatile and cost effective machine for recycling end-of-life tires into rubber chips. Designed for fast and efficient downsizing of end-of-life tires, The CM Whole tire to chip system has two speeds, one for passenger tires and one for semi-tractor trailer tires. According to the manufacturer, the system can process whole tires in a single step while producing clean cut and consistently sized tire chips at high capacities.

The Committee for Socio-economic Analysis (SEAC) has adopted its opinion on a landmark restriction proposal, which would ban microplastics in products such as cosmetics, detergents, fertilisers and could lead to a ban of its use as soft infill on artificial turf sports pitches. It would prevent the release of 500 000 tonnes of microplastics into the environment over 20 years. The adoption of SEAC’s opinion follows an earlier opinion by the Committee for Risk Assessment (RAC) in June 2020. Both committees concluded that an EU-wide restriction under the EU’s chemicals legislation REACH is the most appropriate means to address the risks of billions of small, solid plastic particles polluting our environment. SEAC also concluded on the expected benefits and costs to society of the proposal.

The Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC), recently released its report “Natural Rubber Trends & Statistics, October- November 2020”. The ANRPC says the world production of natural rubber (NR) fell by 8.5%, year-over-year, to 10.098 million tons during Jan-Oct 2020. Expecting a 10.8%, year-over-year, drop during Nov-Dec 2020, the production during the full year 2020 is expected at 12.597 million tons, down 9.0% from the previous year. ANRPC’s revised outlook represents a downward revision by 304,000 tons or 2.2 percentage points from the outlook for 2020 which ANRPC had reported in September 2020. The outlook reported in Sep 2020 was 12.901 million tons at 6.8% fall. In 2021, the world production is anticipated to recover by posting an 8.6% increase to 13.678 million tons. Even if it increases at the anticipated 8.6% rate, the output in 2021 will remain lower than that in 2019 (13.842 million tons) or 2018 (13. 839 million tons).

Renowned Danish manufacturer of tire recycling equipment, ELDAN Recycling A/S, has developed a new sensor-based system to detect foreign objects in tire shreds and reduce the risk of breakdowns and yearly down time of its tire shredders. The ELDAN Foreign Object Detection (FOD) system consists of a sensor system monitoring the vibrating discharge conveyor following the ELDAN Super Chopper. Changes in acceleration from dense objects hitting the surface are picked up by the FOD system, which will stop the material flow of the plant and give off a warning signal. It is then easy for the operator to search through the material on the vibrating discharge conveyor, find and remove the foreign object, and continue production without further problems.

In December 2020, the European Recycling Industries’ Confederation – the umbrella organisation for European Recycling Industries – published a brochure on mechanical tire recycling highlighting the organization’s contribution towards circular economy and climate neutrality. EuRIC Brochure presents key facts about mechanical end-of-life tire recycling, which is a major enabler of circularity and climate mitigation for the entire tire value chain. The Brochure describes the current state of play of ELT management with recommendations to overcome key challenges faced by the European mechanical tire recycling industry be them embedded in legislation, market failures or eco-design. It features key numbers outlining the economic importance of the ELT recycling sector as well as its benefits for the environment and society.

9 News reports that a tyre recycling factory in Perth has been destroyed by fire, with firefighters battling flames as high as 20 metres to extinguish the blaze. The incident happened on December 4, 2020. The Elan tyre recycling facility in Welshpool caught ablaze sometime before 3.30am today, with the fire quickly finding a 1000L fuel tank inside the building. According to 9 News, the cause of the blaze is currently unknown, as no employees were inside and no machinery was operating.

Tyre Recovery Association (TRA) – British end-of-life tire management authority – reports that in response to the growing interest in tyre pyrolysis in the UK and beyond, the TRA is to launch a sub-group of interested members to address a number of matters of common importance. The aim of the new group which will hold its first scoping meeting in January 2021 will be to consider pyrolysis in the context of the current regulatory environment as well as barriers and opportunities in the areas of product and market development.

The U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA), in partnership with The Ray – a nonprofit proving ground for sustainable transportation technologies – recently announced a research project to assess and compile existing research on the performance, environmental impacts and benefits of using ground tire rubber (GTR) in asphalt. The news was reported by an online magazine “The Published Reporter.” According to the source, the compiled research will result in a state of knowledge report that outlines existing research and identifies data gaps in the use of ground tire rubber in rubber modified asphalt.

In its recent semi-annual report, the China Rubber Industry Association (CRIA) announced updated guidelines for the development of rubber industry for the next five years. The guidelines, among others, set goals for rubber recycling and material recovery from end-of-life rubber and tires. Some of the goals related to end-of-life tire rubber and carbon black are described below: Carbon black Annual production by 2025: -6.08 million tons of carbon black -1.75 million tons white carbon black Other goals: -Energy consumption standards met by 80% companies; exhaust cogeneration employed at 90% companies