VANCOUVER, British Columbia—The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries Inc. has released a study that it said will serve as a benchmark for the tire recycling industry.
ISRI released the study at its annual convention and exposition in Vancouver April 24.
“For years, tire recyclers have looked for innovative ways to find markets for the byproducts of the tire recycling process,” ISRI President Robin Wiener said. “As an example, recovered steel is now being sent to steel mills.
“Unfortunately, tire fiber has been a bigger challenge, and there have been a number of barriers along the way. This study provides concrete information on where the industry stands today in terms of production and value.”
Conducted for ISRI by CalRecovery Inc., the study discusses the current state of the market for recycled tire fibers and the barriers to marketing the material.
One key finding of the study is that users or potential users of recycled tire fiber lack a standard set of specifications or applicable industry consensus standards.
Another of its findings is that approximately 87,000 tons of polyethylene terephlalate (PET) and 7,700 tons of polyamide (PA) would be produced annually if all recycled rubber tires are processed for crumb rubber recycling and 100 percent of all PET and PA fiber was recaptured.
ISRI's Tire Division will use the information from the study to develop scrap specifications for tire fiber, according to Wiener. This will include determining the level of purity of tire fiber and other characteristics to turn it into a valuable feedstock, he said.