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Tallants Navarro, the Spanish shredder manufacturer based in Albal, near Valencia, has announced that it is in the process of changing its name to Recycla in order to make it easier to target the export market
The company, which is part of Grupo Soledad, the Aspe, Alicante based conglomerate, whose members include Spain’s largest retreader, Insa Turbo, is currently operating with two names, Tallants Navarro in the Spanish domestic market, where the company is the market leader, and Recycla for overseas markets.
Grupo Soledad’s Global Chief Sales Officer, Salvador Perez Lucena
According toGrupo Soledad’s Global Chief Sales Officer, Salvador Perez Lucena, there are currently 21 tyre recycling plants in Spain, 16 of which are equipped with the company’s shredders. Five of these are part of Grupo Soledad. The Group has also sold shredding plants to France, Germany, Portugal and Morrocco.
“We are in the early stages of developing our brand overseas,” he commented, “but we are looking to develop the Recycla brand on a worldwide basis, with a focus on Europe, South America and the Arab countries. Our shredders are good for tyres, plastics and wood, and we also possess particular expertise in the manufacture of industrial knives. As the only shredder brand belonging to a recycling company, our tailor-made waste management machinery combines both artisanal and technology benefits, the aim of which is to transform the present and future core business of the company without forgetting our beginnings.”
Nokian Tyres and UPM, a leading biomaterials production expert, are partnering to further increase sustainability in the tyre industry by introducing the first concept tyre made with a new renewable material with the potential to replace a significant part of the carbon black currently used in tyre production
The innovative material, called UPM BioMotion™ RFF is a promising fully renewable lignin-based alternative for traditional carbon black, reducing the need for fossil materials and lowering carbon emissions in tire manufacturing.
Nokian Tyres has long been innovating to use the material and has registered a patent for using the material in tyre applications. Nokian Tyres is now licensing its patent to UPM, which enables UPM to provide the raw material to the tire industry. UPM will produce the material at its soon to be ready biochemicals biorefinery inLeuna, Germany.
“Our partnership with Nokian Tyres marks the exciting entry of our Renewable Functional Fillers into the global tyre markets. In successfully demonstrating their application value, it helps us to lay the groundwork for scaling our biorefinery business so that we can make a significant contribution to the sustainable transformation of the mobility sector and beyond,” says Michael Duetsch, Vice President Biochemicals at UPM.
Nokian Tyres Green Step Ligna – the first ever concept tyre made with the fully renewable lignin raw material UPM BioMotion™ RFF
Nokian Tyres Green Step Ligna concept tyre is the first ever tyre made with UPM BioMotion™ RFF, a fully renewable wood-based lignin raw material produced by UPM. In the concept tyre all fossil carbon black in the tyre’s sidewalls is replaced by the new raw material.
“With the concept tyre we demonstrate the usability of the groundbreaking new raw material in tyres. Our concept tyre marks a leap towards the use of renewable materials not only for us, but the whole tire industry. By prototyping this renewable material in our tyres, we aim to set new standards for environmental responsibility,” says Teemu Soini, VP, Innovations & Development at Nokian Tyres.
Features superior to carbon black
“We are constantly working on innovations that advance us towards our target of increasing the share of recycled or renewable raw materials in tyres to 50 per cent by 2030.
Since 2022, a portion of the carbon black used by Nokian Tyreshas been from recycled materials. We see lignin as a promising renewable alternative to traditional carbon black, and in the future, we hope to see that lignin based renewable filler materials would find their way to tyres as well complementing an increasing share of recycled content,” explains Teemu Soini.
According to initial lab tests UPM BioMotion™ RFF has features superior to traditional carbon black. Replacing a significant part of the carbon black currently used in tyres with the new renewable filler material offers great potential for more sustainable tyres as fillers represent approximately 30 per cent of a tyre’s raw materials.
UPM will first supply UPM BioMotion RFF to Nokian Tyresfor prototyping. This includes rigorous testing to use the new material in production. Nokian Tyres is carefully evaluating the material’s performance, safety, and environmental impact compared to traditional carbon black.
The Off-Highway tyre manufacturer enhances its commitment to sustainable practices by joining GPSNR, the organisation that promotes the sustainable production, sourcing and use of natural rubber
BKT, renowned for its rapid adaptation to best global practices, is taking a further step in promoting long-term sustainable practices, culminating in a more environmentally conscious and friendly production in line with the principles defined by GPSNR.
Natural rubber production holds several opportunities for improvement in both environmental and social terms. The expansion of rubber plantations is likely to influence tropical forests, but by means of sustainable practices, it is possible to protect biodiversity and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Similarly, ensuring dignified working conditions and respecting workers’ rights on rubber plantations is central to promoting an ethical and sustainable industry.
To address such challenges and promote sustainable solutions, the Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR) brings together natural rubber producers, traders, tire manufacturers, nongovernmental organisations, academic institutions and other industry partners.
By its membership ofGPSNR, BKT is strengthening its commitment to aligning the natural rubber supply chain with the organisation’s guidelines. As a member of GPSNR, the company has also access to a platform that aims to standardise manufacturers’ sustainability reporting and digital platforms for compliance with the requirements of theEuropean Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) that will come into effect as of December 2024.
“The principles on which GPSNR bases its roots are in line with our ESG policy. This path will allow us to develop and align our digital tracking initiative for the sustainable sourcing of natural rubber in accordance with internationally accepted principles. At the same time, the GPSNR membership allows us to sustain and expand our sustainability initiatives aiming at accelerating both structural and quality changes in our natural rubber supply chain over the next five years”- comments Mr. Rajiv Poddar, Joint Managing Director at BKT.
To support its mission, BKT is cooperating closely with a number of Indian government agencies – including the Rubber Boardand Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association of India – and with some of the world’s leading players in the natural rubber industry.
“Being a member of GPSNR also means that we have a direct contact with suppliers of premium natural rubber across the world, which is crucial for a company like ours that has always focused on high quality standards.” – concludes Poddar. “This is a both strategic and conscious choice that supports our growth ambitions and allows us to pursue ever higher levels in sustainable production.”
By joining GPSNR, BKT further confirms its compliance with core principles in the areas of sustainable forestry, water resource management, protection of rights and territories, human and labour rights, equality, traceability, transparency and anti-corruption, and training and education.
Almost four years after the Bradford tyre fire at a disused kart track, the owner has been sentenced to a year in jail
The Court heard how Stuart Bedford had ignored warnings from the Environment Agency and had collected an estimated 1 million tyres on the site, with an estimated “value” of around £1M. (Which begs the question, given the level of waste tyre exports to India, why Bedford simply did not sell on the tyres and get them off his sites)
Between May and July of 2020, Bedford received visits, phone calls, and official letters – including a formal stop notice – warning him that there were more tyres on the site than he was allowed to have.
The court also heard that Bedford was running a second site at Wright Business Park in Doncaster, which was still receiving tyres three days after the Bradford site caught fire and eventually had more than 208,000 tyres inside a unit with a further 42,000 tyres outside.
The fire, which started on the 16th November 2020, took until the 5th December to extinguish.
Bedford, 62, of Harrogate, was jailed at Bradford Crown Courton Tuesday after admitting operating an unauthorised regulated facility and keeping controlled waste in a manner likely to cause pollution and harm to human health.
Joseph Millington, prosecuting for the Environment Agency, told the court that Bedford was the “controlling mind” behind the site, despite his wife, Vicky, being director of the company running the property.
Vicky Bedford, 51, of Ripon, was described as a “straw director” but accepted she held some responsibility.
She received a 12-month community order after admitting the same charges.
Millington added; “Mr Bedford could be in no doubt of not only the illegality of his actions but the concerns the authorities had about him.”
Fire services were deployed to the site from 16 November until 5 December, costing £1,135,000, according to the prosecution.
Upon passing sentence, Judge Jonathan Gibson told him: “There is no doubt in my mind that you deliberately broke the law.
“You knew from an early stage that the number of tyres that you stored in either of the sites was vastly more than any exemption certificate would have had for either of those sites.”
He added: “You were reckless in the true meaning of the word.”
Pyrum rCB to be used in the production of 70% of the Schwalbe tyre product range, with some 940,000 bicycle tyres already recycled by Pyrum
One year after bicycle tyre manufacturer Schwalbe introduced the world’s first circular tyre usingPyrum rCB, the use of rCBs in tyre production is being massively expanded. From now on, 70 per cent of all Schwalbetyres will be made using Pyrum rCB.
Pyrum takes over the recycling of the tyres in the recycling system. The recovered carbon black is returned to Schwalbe to produce new bicycle tyres. The rCB replaces 100 per cent of fossil carbon black in the production of new bicycle tyres without compromising on quality and at the same time saves 80 per cent CO₂ equivalent. Thanks to the wide range of possible applications, rCB is now also used in Schwalbe’s high-end tyres for road, gravel and mountain bikes as well as in city and cargo bikes.
Felix Jahn, Head of CSR at Schwalbesaid; “This is another milestone on our path of ecological responsibility. Thanks to intensive research and development work, we have succeeded in switching to the use of rCB without having to compromise on the quality and performance of the tyres. This is always our top priority when using recycled materials.”
Pascal Klein, CEO of Pyrum Innovations AGadded; “It’s great for us to see how our rCB is becoming increasingly important in sustainable tyre production. The fact that 70 per cent of theSchwalbe range is already made from our own rCB not only proves the quality of our product, but also shows that great things can be achieved with a lot of commitment and cooperation.”
To date, 940,000 bicycle tyres have already been recycled.Schwalbe is already conducting intensive research into using rCB for the production of its entire tyre range in the future.
Ergon’s modified asphalt composition uses waste tyre pyrolysis oil
A recently granted patent (Publication Number: US11970619B2) discloses a modified asphalt composition that involves combining anasphaltic binderwith a reduced-PAH pyrolysed oil fraction. The process includes pyrolysing rubber articles or rubber particles separately to obtain the pyrolysed oil fraction with a specified initial boiling point or flash point, and then removing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH)compounds from the fraction. Various methods such as fractionally distilling, solvent extracting, centrifuging, or wiped film evaporating are employed to eliminate PAH compounds from the pyrolysed oil fraction.
Furthermore, the patent claims specify the characteristics of the modified asphalt composition, including the maximum allowable PAHcontent, concentration of specific PAH compounds, carbon black solids content, transparency, flash point, and the percentage of the pyrolysed oil fraction in the overall composition. The composition can also include synthetic polymers to enhance its properties and can be used in asphalt emulsions for pavement construction or maintenance. Additionally, the patent describes a method for maintaining pavements by applying the modified asphalt composition as a pavement maintenance binder, followed by a layer of aggregate chips to create a skid-resistant surface. The temperature ranges for the pavement maintenance binder and asphalt emulsion are also detailed in the claims, along with the use of the modified asphalt composition in asphalt paving mixtures with aggregate.
This adds to the pathways to recycling tyre derived materials and to the sustainability of asphalt.
Woven Capital leads Series C round funding LDC Carbon to advance the circular economy by diverting used tyres from landfills and supporting development of high-performance recycled car parts
LD Carbon will use the investment to scale operations to recycle end-of-life tyres and material from end-of-life vehicles into recovered carbon black and pyrolysis oil through pyrolysis and material recovery technology, which in turn can be used to create new automotive parts and tyres. The investment will advance LD Carbon’s mission of accelerating the circular economy while delivering material cost and carbon savings to global customers.
Manufacturing virgin carbon black is a highly polluting process, generating 25 million metric tons of CO2 annually, while another 1.6 million metric tons come from the 28 per cent of all waste tyres that are burned [figure from LDC Carbon]— the combined CO2 equivalent of more than 9M passenger vehicles. LD Carbon’spyrolysis and material recovery process uses patented recovered carbon black manufacturing technology to provide nearly 100 per cent recovery of waste tyres, providing an environmentally safe option for recovered carbon black (“rCB”) and developing pyrolysis oil.
“LD Carbon is solving a tough chemistry problem that continues to challenge manufacturers across the automotive supply chain as they face increasing pressure to embrace sustainability goals,” saidPrashant Bothra, Woven Capitalprincipal who is joining the LD Carbon board. “With a major plant under construction, the company is scaling their proven technology to maximise productivity and reduce the cost of creating high-performance recovered carbon black, offering substantial value compared to virgin materials. With regulatory and corporate tailwinds, a strong sales pipeline, and a first-mover advantage in Asia, we believe LD Carbon is well-positioned to play an important role in the sustainable future.”
Automakers are increasingly adopting increased recycled content for cars. This demand is driven by new corporate net-zero targets, emissions requirements, and European Commission proposals calling for car manufacturers to use 25 per cent recycled plastic content, of which at least 5 per cent must come from end-of-life vehicles.
“Our mission is to dramatically improve the sustainability profile of the automotive industry, while lowering costs,” said Seong Mun Baek, CEO and co-founder of LD Carbon. “Partnering with Woven Capital and other strategic investors will give us invaluable insights into scaling operations to support global OEMs as they seek to offer more sustainable vehicles to discerning consumers and business customers. Together, we can ensure automotive and its related industries are more environmentally friendly than ever while meeting high standards for cost and performance.”
LD Carbon’s existing plant in Gimcheon, South Korea, has an annual capacity of over 7,000 tons of rCB, which is supplied to major tyre and rubber product manufacturers. Additionally, LD Carbon has secured a 10-year supply agreement withSK Incheon Petrochemicalsfor its tyre pyrolysis oil. The company is investing in the construction of Asia’s largest tyre pyrolysis plant in Dangjin City, Chungcheongnam-do, with completion targeted in 2024. Its annual capacity will be 50,000 tons of end-of-life tyres turned into 23,000 tons of TPO, 20,000 tons of rCB, and 7,000 tons of other valuable gas and materials
With elections looming in the UK on July the 4th, we decided to record a general election special of the Tyre Recycling podcast where we looked at the current status of waste tyre management in the UK and what policies (if any) the campaigning parties were looking to implement should they be elected. Editor Ewan Scott additionally spoke to Peter Taylor OBE, Secretary General of Tyre Recovery Association about the issues facing a future a government and his hopes for action rather than the inaction seen with regards to the T8 exemption.
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction to Episode #62: General Election Special
Enefit Power, a subsidiary of the state-owned Eesti Energia, has put on pause the use of shredded tyres as a source of oil production, citing fluctuations in the quality of the end product
Andres Vainola, board chair atEnefit Power, said; “Enefit Power has been using chipped tyres along with oil shale in its oil production since last summer.”
“We have conducted various analysis, including the chemical composition of the oil. We have consequently noticed that different laboratory results reveal variations in the content of some oil components,” Vainola went on, speaking at the opening of a tyre chip plant, operated by private sector firm Ragn-Sells, in Kunda, Ida-Viru County.
“This discrepancy is the result of differences in measurement methodologies.”
“In our effort to offer the market a product with a consistent and verified composition, we are conducting additional oil composition analyses. We have paused the use of tyre chips until we receive further results from the laboratories,” he added.
“This is a circular economy project which has great potential, and to revive and implement similar projects more broadly, it is vital that the regulatory environment becomes more flexible and thereby promotes the introduction of new solutions,” Vainola went on, referring to the complexity of EU bureaucracy.
Eesti Energia announced the introduction of shredded tyres as a source of oil for the Enefit 140plant in the summer of 2016. In 2023, a deal was made to import chipped tyres from Sweden.
The United Arab Emirates has long supported industrialisation; Emirati businessmen always aim to be entrepreneurs in different Industrial fields
In 2004, the first attempt in the field of rubber recycling was started by the “National Rubber Factory”, which is still operating today. Then the government in Abu Dhabi founded “Abu Dhabi Waste Management Centre”, to organise the waste management business for the private sector.
In the beginning, the tyre recycling business faced a challenge to find buyers for its products, and then the consumers began to accept rubber tiles and floors in sports, gymnastics and children’s’ areas. In 2015, local cement factories started to use recycled rubber as an alternative fuel, due to its high calorific value. Also, cement factories in Pakistan started to buy recycled rubber from UAE to use as fuel, and the demand continued to increase. Accordingly, a new business of trading in waste tyres was created, and a new profession called “Waste Tyre Dealers”. A price was established for the used tyres and increased over time to the extent of five times the initial value. This resulted in the tyre recycling factories relying on Waste Tyre Dealers rather than collecting by themselves.
Mr. Zaid Albdour, General Manager at the Gulf Rubber Factory
The Gulf Rubber Factorystarted in 2012, in the Alain area, over a footprint of forty thousand square metres, the location was chosen to be near the waste tyre cemetery, according to Mr. Zaid Albdour, the General Manager of the factory. The production area is a covered area of twenty-four thousand square metres, the rest is stores and managerial buildings and a non-covered area.
The machinery line is divided into two phases, the first is the recycling phase, where the waste tyres are shredded, the wires are separated, and rubber granules are produced to five millimeters. All the phase one machinery is from European origin. Zaid clarified that the initial vision of the board of directors, was to produce a high-quality product. The machinery can recycle in excess of 24,000 tons a year and operates at around 120 tons per day.
The second phase is the rubber production phase, and the machinery is from both Europe and India. Here the rubber granules are ground, before being delivered to the mixing mill. There is a control panel controlling some machines, others are being controlled by a computer programme. Zaid Albdour explained that UAE legislation approves duty exemption for importing machinery in general, but there is no special exemption for the waste recycling field.
When asked about the additives during the production process, Zaid mentioned that, of course, there are additives like natural rubber, oil and binders; all additives were imported, except the binder, which was produced locally.
“The first phase of the production process is almost automated, so we have only nine technicians in that phase,” added Zaid. “While thirty technicians operate the second phase, in addition to administrative staff and drivers.”
Some of the technicians are qualified as they operate modern machines, others are only for carrying and handling, Gulf Rubber Factory trains its technicians in-house, whilst the technicians responsible for the Security and Safety are trained at the Emirati Security Defense administration.
On the question of the energy used to operate the machines, Zaid said that they used electric drives on all machines, and many of the machines are designed to save energy. He added that their tyre recycling technology is environmentally friendly, the company did not produce any hazardous material nor material that needed treatment.
Tyre and Rubber Recycling asked about Gulf Rubber Factory products, he answered we produce cattle corrals, gym flooring and shock absorbers, sports floor underlay, ballistic tiles and blocks, pipe support inserts, pads, sound control underlay and floating floors, rubber mulch and granules.
Zaid Albdour stated that mass production, high quality and delivery on time are their main strengths, because of the latter, the Gulf Rubber Factory managed to export around fifty per cent of the production to other Gulfcountries like Saudi, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman.
Lately and due to the increase in the cost of waste tyres, they had only been able to export ten per cent of the production. So, the price of waste tyres is the major challenge facing Gulf Rubber, said Zaid. “Moreover, we face competition from the imported final products, those products do not have the same level of quality as our products, but we addressed the government to establish standards for the characteristics of the imported products. That is an important strategy that should be adopted by the Government, to support local industry.” Zaid added that there is a support program for industrialism in general, but nothing specific for recycling rubber factories, also there is no support from the Ministry of Environment.
Zaid explained that they started building the factory in 2009. In 2012 they started the tyre recycling phase producing rubber granules; in 2014 they started the rubber compounding to produce the floor mats. In 2017, they developed the technology for floors for gymnastic playgrounds and shooting fields, but the latest development came in 2020 when the factory introduced the sound insulation material used between the floors of large buildings.
In conclusion, Tyre and Rubber Recycling asked Zaid Albdour about the company’s influence on the tyre recycling industry? He mentioned that their factory has an impressive imprint on the industry, from protecting the environment to disposing of many used tyres, additionally creating goods that were previously imported into the market and providing more job opportunities. “We are special,” added Zaid, “in both combining tyre recycling with the rubber industry. If I were to go back to the beginning, I would do this all over again. Even the second generation of proprietors is receiving knowledge and expertise from us in the plant. We strongly foresee that the demand for recycled rubber will increase as long as cement companies keep using it as fuel.
“Our long-term goal is ‘to maintain improving the product’ quality and diversity while stepping up our marketing and export initiatives.”
