Circular Economy
Tyres are one of the most circular products on the market
Circular Economy is a system to reduce – and eventually eliminate – waste and manage raw materials’ scarcity through the continual use of resources.
Tyres are designed with circular economy in mind, to ensure both optimal performance and longevity.
By aligning with EU regulations, and enhancing ELT recycling and retreading, the industry aims to minimise waste and environmental impact while fostering economic growth and job creation.
Retreading – A win-win solution
Retreading involves replacing the worn tread of a tyre with a new one, significantly extending the tyre’s life and reducing waste.
This process is an exemplary practice of the circular economy: it reduces approximately 160 kg of waste for each tyre retreaded twice and saves 104 kg raw materials, all whilst reducing CO2 emissions. European retreading activities support 30,000 jobs, primarily in SMEs, highlighting its economic and environmental benefits.
Truck tyres are designed to be retreaded up to three times.
Management systems of End-of-Life Tyres
The tyre industry has made significant strides in ELT management. For every tyre sold, a tyre is collected and made available for recycling.
In 2021, 95% of ELTs in Europe were collected and treated, with a focus on material recycling and energy recovery. This effort is supported by different management systems, including Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), free market systems, and tax systems, all designed to ensure environmentally sound disposal of ELTs.
In whichever market, the tyre companies are willing to ensure that their end-of-life tyre arisings are accounted for and dealt with in an environmentally sound way. The producer is responsible for ensuring that his products have a suitable recycling and recovery route.
ETRMA has called for a number of actions in the frame of recycling and chemical recycling:
- End of Waste Criteria: Development of criteria for materials derived from ELTs, including recovered Carbon Black (rCB), to enhance their market potential and ensure quality and safety.
- Pyrolysis Technology: Supporting the categorisation of pyrolysis as a recycling operation to encourage investment in innovative recycling technologies.
Recycling Applications
Secondary raw materials from end-of-life tyres (ELTs) are valuable resources for industries such as construction, automotive, and cement. The European tyre and recycling industries are dedicated to enhancing the value of these materials.
Recycling of ELT-derived Rubber granules and powder
- Process: Shredding ELTs and removing steel and fabric components.
- Applications: Rubber granules are used in products like wheels for caddies, dustbins, wheelbarrows, lawnmowers, urban furniture, signposts, playground flooring, athletic tracks, shock-absorbing mats for schools and stables, paving blocks or tiles, and roofing materials.
ELT-derived rubber powder for rubber modified asphalt
- Benefits: Utilises rubber’s elasticity and noise-absorbing characteristics, increasing road surface lifespan, reducing noise pollution, and enhancing safety in wet conditions.
- Current Use: Limited to a few hundred kilometers of roads.
Use of ELTs in steel mills
- Application: Shredded tyres serve as substitutes for anthracite and scrap metal in electric arc furnaces.
- Benefits: Positive environmental impact on dust and gaseous effluents, utilizing both carbon and steel content of tyres.
Emerging recovery routes: Pyrolysis/Thermolysis
- Technologies: Pyrolysis, thermolysis, and gasification.
- Process: Thermal decomposition of tyres into gas, oil, and char.
- Challenges: Economic viability is uncertain due to high process costs and low by-product prices. However, these methods have potential for increasing recycling rates.
Recycling of ELTs in civil engineering applications
- Whole Tyres: Used in projects like coastal protection, erosion barriers, artificial reefs, breakwaters, avalanche shelters, slope stabilization, road embankments, landfill construction, sound barriers, and insulation.
- Shredded Tyres (Tyre Derived Aggregate – TDA): Used as foundation for roads and railways, drainage material, landfill construction, subgrade fill and embankments, backfill for walls and bridges, and subgrade insulation for roads.
- Advantages of TDA: 30-50% lighter, 10 times better drainage than well-graded soil, and 8 times better insulation than gravel.
Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR)
ETRMA’s commitment to advancing circularity and sustainability within the tyre industry is aligned with the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) that is currently being developed by the European Commission.
The ESPR aims to set circularity requirements for tyre design. While supporting this initiative, the tyre industry needs clear and consistent definitions to avoid regulatory overlap. For example, the inclusion of tyres under ESPR must be harmonised with other regulations to prevent double regulation, particularly concerning remanufacturing and refurbishment definitions.
