ZHUMADIAN, China—China's tire maker Doublestar broke ground on its smart plant for scrap rubber recycling in Zhumadian in December, the company said.
Located in the city's Runan County, the site covers 2.15 million square feet and will be able to handle 200,000 tons of scrap rubber annually when fully operational. The company has earmarked $92.7 million for the project.
The site contains two phases, each including 100,000 tons of annual capacity. Phase 1 is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2018, Doublestar said.
The firm said the site will be the world's first Industry 4.0 site for scrap rubber recycling, with smart technology used in processes such as sorting, rinsing, drying, conveyance, pyrolysis and storage. The plant also boasts zero emission using Doublestar's waste treatment technology.
In 2016 China produced 15 million tons of scrap tire, the company said. With machinery developed by Doublestar, the site will be able to fully recycle scrap tire, generating primary oil, carbon black, steel wire and gas, the last of which will be used to fuel the plant.
The new site will be the first step of Doublestar's expansion into the scrap rubber recycling sector. The company plans to build three additional sites as well as a research center, although more details are not disclosed.