Pyrum's pyrolysis process is said to save more CO₂ than material recycling.

Pyrum Innovations AG (Pyrum) has had the CO₂ savings of its pyrolysis process determined by the Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, Safety and Energy Technology (UMSICHT) as part of a life cycle assessment. According to the study, the Pyrum process saves 747 kilograms of CO₂ equivalent per metric ton of scrap tires compared to the use of fossil raw materials; including the use of the waste heat produced, which Pyrum already uses, the figure is said to be 965 kilograms of CO₂ equivalent per metric ton of scrap tires. Compared with the recycling processes currently used in Germany, such as material recycling (market share 52%) and the burning of old tires in cement plants (42%) and in refuse-derived fuel (RDF) power plants (6%), which together save 561 kilograms of CO₂ equivalent per ton of old tires, the process performs up to 72 percent better, according to Pyrum. The result surprised Pyrum AG itself. Its CEO, Pascal Klein, says: "The results of the Life Cycle Assessment show us once again that pyrolysis technology is the leading process for recycling scrap tires. While other methods are severely limited in market potential, we are only at the beginning with pyrolysis and see the greatest growth opportunities here."

 

Sources:

• kunststoffe.de (Sep. 20, 2022)
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