News: Weibold Academy

Tire pyrolysis oil (TPO) has landed at the intersection of two big policy drives: circularity for end-of-life tires (ELTs) and the EU’s push to scale recycled carbon fuels under RED III. Chemistry is attractive — a liquid fuel from a widespread waste stream — but the arithmetic is brutal. Combustion emissions alone push TPO very close to conventional diesel on a life-cycle basis, meaning TPO alone cannot meet RED III’s 70% GHG reduction requirement without using credits tied to the tires’ alternative fate. Properly applied e_ex-use (diversion) credits are therefore decisive: they can turn TPO from a near-miss into a qualifying recycled carbon fuel — but only if the baseline is robustly documented and upstream emissions are tightly controlled.

The European Union’s REACH Regulation (EC 1907/2006) has long set the benchmark for chemicals legislation worldwide. Since entering into force in 2007, REACH has reshaped how industries produce, import, and use chemical substances. Its philosophy is straightforward but demanding: “no data, no market.” Companies must generate safety data and register any substance manufactured or imported in quantities of one ton or more per year. While waste itself is exempt, once a waste-derived product—such as pyrolysis oil, recovered carbon black (rCB), or syngas—achieves end-of-waste status, it is treated as a chemical substance and falls within REACH obligations.

The UK Environment Agency (EA) has recently published a detailed internal review on the export of end-of-life tires (ELTs). The report highlights significant regulatory shortcomings, raising questions about the environmental and legal soundness of current practices. Since India receives the majority of UK tire exports, the review carries substantial implications for trade flows, compliance requirements, and the structure of the ELT recovery market.

When Europe adopted the Renewable Energy Directive III (RED III) in June 2023, few outside the energy policy sphere anticipated how consequential the reform would be for niche industries. Yet, for producers of Tire-Derived Pyrolysis Oil (TPO), RED III is more than legislative housekeeping; it's a turning point that transforms a once-marginal circular fuel into a recognized contributor to Europe's decarbonization ambitions.

Each year, well over a billion tires worldwide reach the end of their life. Many of these discarded tires still accumulate in landfills or are burned for a one-time energy gain, creating pollution and wasting valuable materials. Tire pyrolysis, a form of chemical recycling, breaks down end-of-life tires (ELT) into useful products like oil (TPO), gas, and recovered carbon black (rCB). Across the globe – and especially in Europe and the United States – evolving legal frameworks are transforming tire-derived pyrolysis oil (TPO) into a strategic commodity. New laws and policies on both sides of the Atlantic are beginning to treat TPO as a sought-after resource for fuels and petrochemicals. This shift in perspective is driving a wave of investment and innovation in ELT (end-of-life tire) pyrolysis, positioning it as a crucial component in the puzzle of the circular economy.

In 2018, the world took its first objective measure of our economy's circularity. The result, 9.1%, was already sobering. Just over nine percent of all materials consumed by the global economy were being recycled and reintroduced. The remaining ninety percent ended as waste or emissions or locked away in long-lived assets like buildings and infrastructure. Since then, the situation has only worsened despite the circular economy becoming popular in global sustainability dialogues.

Recovered carbon black (rCB) represents a transformative opportunity in the transition toward sustainable industrial materials. Derived from the pyrolysis of end-of-life tires (ELT), rCB offers a compelling alternative to virgin carbon black (vCB), significantly reducing environmental impacts while supporting circular economy principles. As industries seek to reduce their carbon footprint, enhance resource efficiency, and increase the use of recycled inputs, rCB has emerged as a commercially viable and environmentally responsible material.

Recent debates have questioned chemical recycling technologies' environmental effectiveness and practicality, mainly the production and use of pyrolysis oil derived from plastic waste. Critics argue that pyrolysis oil might exacerbate ecological problems rather than solve them, claiming that chemical recycling does not represent true recycling and potentially undermines broader waste reduction initiatives. However, evidence-based analyses indicate that these technologies, particularly pyrolysis, play a significant and beneficial role when implemented responsibly.

For years, discarded tires have posed a serious environmental dilemma. Their resilience makes it challenging to break them down while burning them releases harmful pollutants. Researchers have increasingly turned to pyrolysis, a thermal process that transforms waste tires into valuable products such as pyrolysis oil, recovered carbon black (rCB), and gas. Over the past 20 years, interest in tire pyrolysis has surged dramatically. A recent analysis of more than 1,400 studies published between 2000 and 2024 shows that research in this field has accelerated, particularly since 2016. Countries like China and India have emerged as major contributors, driven by growing environmental concerns and the need for sustainable waste management solutions. Scientists are primarily focused on refining pyrolysis techniques to improve efficiency, enhance product quality, and scale up for industrial applications.