Disposal of Waste Tires

Scrap_TiresTens of millions of tires are discarded across the Middle East every year. Disposal of  waste tires is a challenging task because tires have a long life and are non-biodegradable. The traditional method of disposal of waste tires have been stockpiling or illegally dumping or landfilling, all of which are short-term solution.

Menace of Waste Tires

Stockpiled tires provide perfect breeding grounds for mosquitoes, vermin and snakes. Accidental fires caused in tire dumps can rage for months releasing toxic fumes. For example, a massive fire broke out at Jahra dumpsite in Kuwait in April 2012 where more than 5 million waste tires were stored.

Landfilling of tires is a major problem as tires come up to the top of landfill and can damage caps and liners. Tires are not desired at landfills because of their large volumes and 75% void space which quickly consumes valuable space. Many countries in North America and Europe have banned landfilling of whole tires and made recycling mandatory.

Tire recycling is the process of recycling vehicles’ tires that are no longer suitable for use on vehicles due to wear or irreparable damage (such as punctures). These tires are among the largest and most problematic sources of waste, due to the large volume produced and their durability. There are three major technologies for recycling of waste tires – ambient mechanical grinding, cryogenic grinding and pyrolysis.

Ambient mechanical grinding

In ambient mechanical grinding process, the breaking up of a scrap tire happens at ambient temperature. Tires are passed through a shredder, which breaks the tires into chips. The chips are fed into a granulator that breaks them into small pieces while removing steel and fiber in the process. Any remaining steel is removed magnetically and fiber through a combination of shaking screens and wind sifters. Finer rubber particles can be obtained through further grinding in secondary granulators and high-speed rotary mills.

Cryogenic grinding

Cryogenic grinding refers to the grinding of scrap tires at temperatures near minus 80oC using liquid nitrogen or commercial refrigerants. Cryogenic processing generally uses pre-treated car or truck tires as feedstock, most often in the form of chips or ambiently produced granulate.

When the tires are exposed to such low temperatures, they become brittle and can be easily crushed and broken. It can be a four-phase system which includes initial size reduction, cooling, separation, and milling. This process requires less energy than others and produces rubber crumb of much finer quality.

Pyrolysis of waste tires – A schematic

Rubber crumbs or crumb rubber, the product obtained from ambient/cryogenic grinding of scrap tires, is used for manufacture of new tires or in a variety of landscaping applications including path paving projects, playground surface cover, running tracks, and athletic field turfs.

Pyrolysis

Pyrolysis refers to the thermal decomposition of scrap tires either in the absence or lack of oxygen. Pyrolysis uses pre-treated car or truck tire chips as the principal feedstock. It is a two-phase treatment which uses thermal decomposition to heat the rubber in the absence of oxygen to break it into its constituent parts, e.g., tire-derived fuel (TDF), synthetic gas and char. Cracking and post-cracking take place progressively as the material is heated to 450-500 °C and above.

The use of TDF in cement kilns, paper mills or power plants is one of the best uses of scrap tires. The char can be used in low value production processes as a colorant or filler.

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About Salman Zafar

Salman Zafar is the Founder of EcoMENA, and an international consultant, advisor, ecopreneur and journalist with expertise in waste management, waste-to-energy, renewable energy, environment protection and sustainable development. His geographical areas of focus include Middle East, Africa, Asia and Europe. Salman has successfully accomplished a wide range of projects in the areas of biomass energy, biogas, waste-to-energy, recycling and waste management. He has participated in numerous conferences and workshops as chairman, session chair, keynote speaker and panelist. Salman is the Editor-in-Chief of EcoMENA, and is a professional environmental writer with more than 300 popular articles to his credit. He is proactively engaged in creating mass awareness on renewable energy, waste management and environmental sustainability in different parts of the world. Salman Zafar can be reached at salman@ecomena.org or salman@bioenergyconsult.com

24 Responses to Disposal of Waste Tires

  1. HARISH says:

    HELLO MR. SALMAN 
     
    GOOD DAY, WE ARE LOOKING A TIRE RECYCLING IMPORTER KINDLY LET ME KNOW WHO CAN BUY THESE TIRE. 
     
             WAITING FOR YOUR FEEDBACK…

  2. Khalid Malhi says:

    WE WANT TO BUY SCRAP TYRES OF TRUCK BUSES 3 PIECES CUT

    • Charles says:

      I got millions of tyre waste…. Looking for expertise and partners to set up recycling plant in Kenya and produce useful products

  3. srinivas murthy says:

    Hi Charles, I am from INDIA and looking for bulk sellers of used tyres. Please call me on +91-8247275925.

  4. Pingback: Eco-friendly Tyre Manufacturing | EcoMENA

  5. G.Brian says:

    Am brian currently working on waste tyres disposal here in Kenya ,if anyone has insights please share with me .Thanks
    my email gichurubrian79@gmail.com
    @charles and others

  6. Osato Obanor says:

    There are a lot of used tires in Nigeria. Send an email if you’re interested in partnership. Chiomaobanor01@gmail.com

  7. Kenneth Hunt says:

    My name is Ken, I have been studying the pyrolysis of carbon based materials for years and have built small scale reactors for research purposes. Also I have partnered with large scale reactor manufacturers.

    Call me @ 770-302-3640 or email
    kennethhunt45@gmail.com.

  8. Pingback: Turn the waste tyre to diesel fuel. – Allpurposeventure

  9. Pingback: How to Convert Scrap Tires into Biofuel | EcoMENA

  10. Yash Joshi says:

    We deal in all kinds of waste management.

  11. Pingback: Environmental Benefits of Tire Recycling | EcoMENA

  12. Irene Mabaki Mali says:

    I am Irene an environmentalist from Tanzania in Africa. We are looking for a company to buy waste tires or wants to have a plant of grinding tires into oil, road construction. We have excess waste tires across nation. anyone who is ready can contact me through +255 711 537206 or mabakimali@gmail.com

  13. EMMANUEL HABIMANA says:

    Having a bulk of waste tires, I would like to embark on how to recycle them in eco-friendly manner.
    Please advise me.
    One more time

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