Waste ends.
Value begins.

From waste tyres to useful products

How do waste tyres become useful products? We're showing a generic plant to explain the process. Follow an advanced automated batch pyrolysis plant from tyre receipt through oil, gas, carbon and steel recovery, product testing, dispatch and preparation for the next batch.

Receive & inspect

Incoming tyres are weighed, inspected and recorded by source. Tyres suitable for reuse or retreading are separated first. Reject unsuitable contamination and remove trapped water. Accepted scrap goes into designated paved storage bays, with drainage, fire separation and clear access routes. Each batch must remain traceable.

Prepare the feed

Preparation depends on the reactor. Some batch designs accept whole tyres; others require cut sections or chips. Cutting, shredding and bead removal are used only where required. Control moisture and contamination, recover any steel removed during preparation, and weigh the feed before loading.

Load one measured batch

A measured batch is loaded mechanically into the cold, safe reactor. Loading quantity and free space follow the equipment design. Once this batch is loaded, the heating cycle begins with the door secured. A batch reactor is not opened while hot to keep adding tyres.

Seal & check

Before heating, close and secure the hatch, verify seal integrity and check the complete vapour route. Cooling, condensers, gas handling, the flare and pollution controls must be ready. The programmable logic controller checks the required start conditions. Missing safety conditions prevent the heating sequence from starting.

Remove oxygen with nitrogen

Nitrogen displaces oxygen through a permanently installed generation and buffer-storage system. The engineered procedure defines the purge sequence and acceptance conditions. Air must stay out of the hot process. Gas monitoring and ventilation also protect workers, because a nitrogen-rich atmosphere can be unsafe to breathe.

Heat through the reactor wall

Approved start-up fuel fires the external furnace. Heat passes through the reactor wall into the tyres. Combustion air belongs to the furnace circuit; it must not enter the tyre chamber. Controlled indirect heating is fundamentally different from burning tyres in the open.

How pyrolysis works

Inside the oxygen-excluded reactor, heat breaks long rubber polymers into smaller molecules. Hydrocarbon vapours and gas leave through the closed outlet, while carbon-rich solids and steel remain. Thermocouples measure temperature and pressure transmitters monitor the vapour system. The controller regulates heating within the plant's design limits. Heating rate, temperature and the time vapours spend in the hot zone influence the balance between liquid oil and gas.

Recover the hot vapours

Hot vapours travel through closed pipework to the primary separator and condensers. Depending on its design, the separator removes heavy droplets and entrained particles. Heavy condensate also follows a closed collection route. Instruments and an engineered bypass protect the process if the vapour outlet becomes obstructed.

Condense vapour into oil

Condensers turn recoverable vapour into liquid by removing heat. Vapour flows on one side of a metal heat-transfer surface, while cooling water flows on the other. The two streams remain separate. Heat passes through the wall and the cooling circuit carries it away. Staged cooling collects liquid fractions; the gas still uncondensed moves onward for treatment and furnace reuse.

Separate & store the crude oil

Collected liquid is separated from water and sediment as required. Pumps transfer crude tyre pyrolysis oil into closed metallic storage tanks, while oily water goes to a separate system. Containment and controlled transfer reduce leaks and vapour release. This is crude oil, not automatically a road-diesel replacement.

Reuse the process gas

Remaining gas passes through condensate removal and the gas treatment specified by the design. Controlled combustion then returns some of its energy to the external furnace. Start-up still needs an energy source, and electricity is also consumed. Actual energy records determine how much outside fuel the plant saves.

Control surplus gas

Surplus gas and emergency flows go to a properly engineered flare. Carbon-monoxide alarms, flammable-vapour detectors and temperature-pressure interlocks support shutdown and safe routing. The approved pressure regime prevents air entry. Fire detection, hydrants, trained operators and an emergency plan are also essential; automation alone is not complete protection.

Clean the exhaust & capture dust

Furnace exhaust is separate from the recovered process gas. It passes through suitable air-pollution controls, including the alkaline scrubber and mist eliminator specified in the reference design. Extraction captures dust at discharge and bagging points. Periodic stack, ambient-air and workplace monitoring verify performance; a clear-looking stack proves very little.

Cool the sealed reactor

At the end of the reaction, heating stops while remaining vapours and gas continue along their safe recovery routes. The sealed reactor cools under controlled conditions with nitrogen purging. Temperature, pressure and gas conditions must satisfy the approved discharge criteria. Never open a hot reactor just to accelerate cooling.

Discharge the carbon-rich char

After safe discharge conditions are verified, char is removed through an enclosed or controlled mechanical system. A screw conveyor or suitable vacuum arrangement moves it to collection and sealed bagging. Extraction remains active. Hot open dumping, uncontrolled dust clouds and manual shovelling are not features of this automated process.

Recover steel & reset

Steel remaining after pyrolysis is recovered mechanically from the cooled reactor under dust extraction. Steel removed during feed preparation has already followed a separate route. Clean and inspect the reactor, seals and vapour path before the next batch. Maintenance requires proper isolation and the approved safe-work procedure.

Prepare char for its next use

Raw char is not automatically finished recovered carbon black. A material application may require metal removal, milling, classification, further treatment and pelletising. Test ash, sulphur and the properties required by the customer. Material that does not qualify must follow another authorised route, such as suitable industrial co-processing.

Test the oil

Representative oil samples are checked for water, solids, sulphur, flash point, density and viscosity, among other required properties. Compare results with the customer's specification and permitted end use. Each batch can differ. Colour, smell or the ability to burn does not establish fuel quality.

Upgrade where the market requires

Higher-value fuel or chemical markets may require separate upgrading. Distillation separates boiling-range fractions. Additional treatment may remove sulphur and other contaminants or improve stability. Blending, where appropriate, is followed by complete retesting. Distillation alone does not turn crude tyre oil into certified road diesel.

Treat water & manage residues

Cooling water recirculates, with provision for make-up and blowdown. Oily water and scrubber liquid require separate collection and appropriate treatment. The design must provide the required water-reuse and zero-liquid-discharge arrangements. Sludge, spent treatment media and other residues follow authorised routes instead of entering drains or the environment.

The products & their next destination

The final product streams have different uses. Tyre pyrolysis oil can supply permitted industrial fuel applications or become feedstock for further refining, after quality testing. Carbon-rich char is graded and processed for suitable material or fuel uses; recovered carbon black applications require additional qualification. Recovered steel wire goes to metal recyclers for remelting. Non-condensable process gas is cleaned and reused for heating within the plant. Each stream is kept separate, and its specification determines the next destination.

Store & dispatch

Accepted oil is pumped into suitable closed tankers. Char travels in sealed bags and steel goes to a recycler. Safe storage, spill control, product records and transport documentation complete the handover. Plant operation and product routes must also comply with the applicable operating consents, waste authorisations and fire-safety approvals.

Measure every output

For every batch, record the tyre input and all outputs: oil, gas, char, steel, water and residues. Account for retained material and measurement uncertainty. Add start-up fuel, electricity and water consumption. These records establish actual recovery and performance; sales promises cannot substitute for a measured mass and energy balance.

Ready for the next batch

The complete cycle is receive, prepare, load, seal, purge, heat, recover, cool, discharge, inspect and restart. Oil, gas, char and steel each need a qualified destination. Water, emissions and residues remain part of the process throughout. Useful recovery depends on verified quality, controlled operation and authorised end use.