News: Tire Recycling & Pyrolysis

Tyre Recycling Podcast interviews key players from the tyre recycling and pyrolysis industry from around the world. Make sure to subscribe for Tyre & Rubber Recycling magazine to receive updates about its interviews! Episode 46 of the Tyre Recycling podcast features an interview with Thomas Sörensson, the CEO of Scandinavian Enviro Systems. Following the news of their joint venture with Antin, Thomas joined the Tyre Recycling Podcast to dive deep into the details of the announcement and to discuss their future plans across Europe.

According to Muscat Daily magazine, to support the circular economy, the Muscat and Oman Environment Authority (EA) has suspended issuing licenses for the export of end-of-life tires. Dr. Mohammad Majid al Kasbi, Director of the Department of Chemical Materials at the EA, revealed to Muscat Daily that the authority has halted issuing licenses for exporting scrap tires from both large and small vehicles beginning on April 9 for a six-month term that may be extended.

Mars Mineral, a global provider of pelletizing technology equipment, has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with South Korean-based LD Carbon to develop and install Mars’ pin mixer technology at LD Carbon’s newest pyrolysis and recovered carbon black (rCB) facility, which will be the largest of its kind in Asia. LD Carbon is a material industry company that supplies its Green Carbon Black, an eco-friendly rCB made from waste tires that have been pyrolyzed, refined, and processed for reuse by tire and rubber manufacturers. LD Carbon also reclaims pyrolysis oil from the process that is used for replacing crude oil and raw material of petrochemical products.

Pyrum Innovations AG (Pyrum), a pioneer in the sustainable recycling of end-of-life tyres (ELTs) based on its patented pyrolysis technology, has achieved 72 out of 100 points in imug's ESG rating. The company's overall sustainability performance is therefore rated as "very good". The rating by imug, one of the leading sustainability rating agencies in Germany and a specialist in environmental, social and governance (ESG) research, was carried out in the first quarter of 2023 and is based on several areas of investigation. Pyrum scored particularly well in the area of "products and services", where the company received full marks. Here, imug analysed Pyrum's business model and assessed how the company's products and services make a positive contribution to environmental or social development.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) announced the funding of more than $2 million in grants to develop new markets for end-of-life vehicle tires. When illegal dumping in the environment occurs, scrap tires pose both a fire hazard and a human health risk as a mosquito breeding ground. These end-of-life tire grants support building sustainable markets for recycled tire materials in Michigan. Grants have traditionally included support for essential equipment and materials that aid in the establishment of new markets, including various manufacturing processes, implementation and testing of paving materials, energy generation, and other innovative approaches.

Manufacturers’ Monthly magazine reports that a steel manufacturing process using waste rubber feedstock has been commercialized in a collaborative project with Australian steel manufacturer and TSA Accredited Recycler Molycop, UNSW, Crawford Boots, and the AMGC. The company's electric arc furnace (EAF) in Newcastle uses less energy and produces fewer emissions thanks to the new polymer injection process, which also prevents waste rubber from going to the landfill. The technology, which was created in association with Crawford Boots, the Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre (AMGC), and the UNSW Sustainable Materials Research and Technology (SMaRT) Centre, will now be made available for export to global EAF operators.

Pyrum Innovations AG (Pyrum), a pioneer in the sustainable recycling of end-of-life tires (ELTs) based on its patented pyrolysis technology, is taking the next step in its cooperation with Mercedes-Benz AG. In future, the company will recycle several hundred tonnes of used tires from the Mercedes-Benz Used Parts Centre every year. The company produces pyrolysis oil from the ELTs using its own innovative process. The pyrolysis oil produced is then supplied to the cooperation partner BASF SE, which uses the oil as a raw material in combination with biomethane in the production of virgin plastics for the manufacture of Mercedes-Benz vehicle components. Pascal Klein, CEO of Pyrum Innovations AG: “We are very pleased to take the next step in our cooperation with Mercedes-Benz. Through the chemical recycling of end-of-life tires from Mercedes-Benz vehicles, we can jointly reduce the use of fossil resources and ultimately close material cycles.”

Olivia Collier and Maslin Mellick, 2022 master of architecture graduates from the College of Architecture and Planning (CAP) in Denver, found inspiration for their senior capstone project in in the local tire landfill, called "Tire Mountain". Their project, which involved creating a "Clean-Tech Manufacturing Facility for Sustainable Building Products," was awarded the Colorado Green Building Guild (CGBG) Student Project of the Year. Although they initially researched nature's byproducts and society's waste to develop sustainable building materials, they ultimately focused on tires, resulting in their innovative invention and design. Both Collier and Mellick wanted to work on a project that would have a meaningful impact on their area. They decided to focus on landfills and found inspiration in the trash at Colorado Tire Recycling (CTR).

According to European Rubber Journal magazine’s article, the recovered carbon black (rCB) industry will require high levels of support and cooperation to fulfil on its potential to greatly decrease the environmental impact of the tire & rubber industry. In a report, Martin von Wolfersdorf – a renown carbon black expert from Berlin – lists a number of "mega challenges" that the still-developing business must overcome. Von Wolfersdorf estimated the average capacity of furnace processing plants in the EU at roughly 113 kilotons per annum (ktpa) in 2021 in a report presented* at the Tire Technology Expo 2023 conference.