Partners target circular economy tyres

Tyre giant Bridgestone is leading a partnership to establish a closed-loop regime to transform end-of-life tyres (ELTs) into new tyres.

An agreement between Bridgestone’s EMEA unit, Grupo BB&G and Versalis will research and realise the best technical solutions to establish a successful system for recycling of ELTs on a large scale.

ELTs will be transformed, through pyrolysis, into tyre pyrolysis oil (TPO) to create high-quality elastomers comparable to those obtained from traditional feedstock for the production of new tyres. The collaboration intends to boost the development of pyrolysis technology and TPO, as well as scaling up the polymers as a valuable circular resource.

The partnership will leverage BB&G’s thermomechanical process of pyrolysis to recycle ELTs on a commercial scale.

Pilots

BB&G has built and operated two generations of pilot plants in the past 10 years and has recently commissioned its first commercial scale tyre pyrolysis production to validate the feasibility and quality outputs of the process. BB&G’s unit is in Fatima, Portugal and has been running since mid-July.

Over the next months, BB&G oil will be fed into Versalis’ plants to manufacture the circular elastomers that Bridgestone will use to create a first batch of tyres in early 2025. Through this collaboration, Versalis will integrate BB&G’s pyrolysis oil into its own supply chain thus expanding its product range.

100% goal

Laurent Dartoux, group president Bridgestone EMEA, says: ‘We have set a goal of working with 100% sustainable materials by 2050, and recycling and reusing products is an important part of this. The partnership with industry leaders Grupo BB&G and Versalis to research, implement and overcome the challenge of recycling tyres will contribute towards this target.’

Adriano Alfani, Versalis ceo, adds: ‘We have developed lower-carbon solutions which perfectly fit in the value chain we’ve established with our industry partners Bridgestone EMEA and Grupo BB&G.’

BB&G ceo Germano Carreira concludes: ‘This strategic partnership … confirms the value of our patented technology and acknowledges the persistence that has brought us to this crucial point, enabling us to expand our technology across different regions.’