What do I do with my old scrap tires ?
If you have a couple of old tires that you need to dispose of find a local recycler that does Scrap Tire Collection using the
Waste Exchange
Enter the estimated quantity that you have and your location and it will try to match you directly to a local recycler.
If you have a large stockpile of scrap tires or if you generate ongoing quantities of scrap tires, Submit your inquiry to the
Scrap Tire Exchange.
Alternatively, you can:
Call/Contact Your Local Municipality / City / Town Regional Solid Waste Dept or Recycling Dept to see what
they advise you to do with the tires.
Contact a local tire shop to see if they can take them for disposal - and is there a fee for this ?
Please note that when disposing of scrap tires there is sometimes a "tip fee" charged by the person collecting your tires.
A tip fee is a “fee to collect scrap tires” that is used to offset the material handling costs.
Scrap Tires
If you wish to deal in large quantities of
Scrap Tires
post a listing to the Tire & Rubber Recycling exchange.
Your posting will allow you to connect directly with potential counter parties.
Baled Tires
For anyone who deals in
Baled Scrap Tires
the exchange service facilitates domestic and import/export trade.
You may take this opportunity to learn a little bit about the tire
recycling
industry.
The option of salvaging tires for reuse as a usable tire reduces premature disposal
Used Tires
If you wish to Buy or Sell Used Tires, simply
ADD your inquiry
to the Tire Recycling Exchange.
Quick and efficient inspection of tires can be preformed with the use of a
tire inflator,
an adjustable hub that can rapidly inflate tires to fully specified pressure and allow rotation for close examination
to detect any defects.
Repairable Tires
Damaged tires with punctures, holes or cuts, may be able to have slight repairs done safely for your
Car
or
Truck
tires.
Simple repairs like patches or plugs or more technical repairs like hot or cold section vulcanizing
may be able to save your tire from disposal.
Tire Casings
Good quality, low tread tires can be given a whole new cycle of life by retreading.
If you wish to Buy or Sell
Tire Casings
connect with the market by listing in the Tire Recycling Exchange.
tire buffings
Scrap Tire Collection
When collecting scrap tires it is necessary to establish the value of a tip fee based on
the type and weight of the tires being collected. A tip fee is a “fee to collect scrap tires”
that is used to offset the material handling costs.
Actual weights and values should be established based on individual operations from the mix of scrap material being handled.
Historically the material handling costs (transportation and processing) has been greater than
the value received when the reclaimed rubber is sold.
To achieve profitability the need to charge a tip fee (a fee to collect scrap tires)
to offset the material handling costs has been required.
Sorting & Grading
Sorting and Grading of the incoming stream of
raw scrap tires
allows the harvesting of
Tire Salvage
and prepares the tires for further processing steps.
The tires may be sent for slitting and
Dismantling Tire Parts
or directed to chipping or
Shredding
operations.
Scrap Tire Recycling
First of all we need to dispel the myth that there is no market for scrap tires. It is possible to
market or sell 100% of the material reclaimed from scrap tires;
the challenge is to do it profitably.
Historically the material handling costs (transportation and processing) has been greater than
the value received when the reclaimed rubber is sold.
The solution to achieve profitability has been to charge a tip fee (a fee to collect scrap tires)
to offset the material handling costs
Most people in the tire recycling business are involved in the collection, sorting and grading of tires.
This process encompasses collecting scrap tires from numerous sources,
then sorting the tires for reuse or recycling.
Tires are sorted into:
1) Salvageable tires: These are tires that can be repaired/retreaded and sold as
Used Tires or
Tire Casings
2) Un-Salvageable tires: These scrap tires would then go for recycling by the following processes:
Tire Slitting into Tire Parts
Tire Chipping or Shredding into Tire Chip, Shred or
TDF
Tire Granulation into
CRUMB Rubber
Tire Pyrolysis
Scrap Tire Collection
When collecting scrap tires it is necessary to establish the value of a tip fee based on
the type and weight of the tires being collected. A tip fee is a “fee to collect scrap tires”
that is used to offset the material handling costs.
Actual weights and values should be established based on individual operations from the mix of scrap material being handled.
Scrap Tire Processing
There are three methods of processing scrap tires:
Whole Tire Shredding,
Tire Pyrolysis or Gasification and
Multi-Stage Tire Processing
Whole Tire Shredding
Whole tire shredding is a process of reducing tires into smaller pieces. The pieces are usually irregularly shaped.
Depending on the type of shredder being used, the output will either be mixed shredded tires or #2 shredded tires.
Screening the output material will allow for additional smaller pieces to be segregated as free-flowing
TDF (tire derived fuel).
Tire Pyrolysis or Gasification
Tire pyrolysis is a technology used for recycling scrap/waste tires. It is not a new technology; in fact it has
been used for many years.
This method uses a special unit to incinerate the scrap tires in a closed, oxygen-free environment.
Tire pyrolysis or gasification, as it is also known, reduces the waste tires into raw tire pyrolysis carbon,
tire pyrolysis oils, recovered tire pyrolysis gas and
recovered incinerator steels.
Multi-Stage Tire Processing
At each level during multi-stage tire processing there is an opportunity to sell material which then
reduces the amount of residual material to be further processed at the next stage.
1. Tire Slitting &
Tire Parts
Tire slitting is the process of cutting the scrap tires into parts or pieces using a tire slitter, tire cutter or tire debeader.
The first stage in tire slitting is to debead the tire by cutting very close to the edge of the inner rim of the tire
(typically not more than one inch) to remove the bead wire.
The next stage is to slit the tire (normally at the shoulder) in order to separate the sidewalls from the treads.
The tire parts are then separated into key types of
scrap tire rubber.
2. Tire Chipping & Tire Chip
Tire chipping is typically done after a scrap tire has been debeaded and slit. It is done by using a tire chipper.
Once the scrap tires have been chipped they can then be divided
into grades of tire chip and shredded tyres
3. Tire Granulation & CRUMB
Tire granulation is a further size reduction of the chipped tires using a machine that produces consistent granule quality.
As part of the granulation process, steel
and fibers are removed leaving clean rubber or CRUMB. The resulting end product is then separated into Granulated Tire
CRUMB grades.
Market Price Trends
The Tire & Rubber Recycling Composite Index tracks the changing market prices in the rubber and
tire recycling industry. The Index consists of a weighted basket of specific benchmark grades of scrap rubber and tire materials.
The Index takes a daily snapshot of the spot market prices and allows you to freely take a quick view of the past 7, 30, 90 days
and 1 & 2 year trends.
If you require a more granular view of the spot market prices, this is available with a subscription to the
The Tire & Rubber Recycling Composite Index
Tire Recycling Information
For anyone seeking current information or research data on the tire recycling industry,
you may access and ask your
Recycling Questions
to a core group of experienced and knowledgeable recycling industry professionals.
If you are interested in entering the tire recycling business, check out The Tire Recycling Market Guide.
The Tire Recycling Market Guide is focused on providing a rapid understanding of tire recycling fundamentals from an economic standpoint or market basis. It provides an overview of the
flow of scrap tires throughout collection, tire salvage, and the processing stages of the scrap tire recycling process.
