The results of the research were published in the journal "Transport. Transport facilities. Ecology".
— Today, one of the most pressing environmental problems is the disposal of old car tires. For example, over 850 thousand tons of such waste appears in our country every year, and only a third of the total volume of tires around the world is recycled. Our technology is aimed not only at processing raw materials, but also at saving electricity and heat, — says one of the developers, a master's student at the Department of Environmental Protection of the Perm Polytech University, Oleg Gruber.
Recycling car tires using traditional methods is energy intensive. Therefore, the ecologists of the Perm Polytech Institute proposed a method for rubber processing, in which the waste is thermally treated at temperatures of about 500°C. This technology does not require additional energy consumption and preliminary preparation of tires, but it allows obtaining valuable resources - pyrolysis gas, liquid fuel and carbon material, which can be used to generate heat and electric energy. On average, the method will allow you to get 2.5 cubic meters. m of gas from 1 kg of raw materials.
— Non-combustible components and carbon dioxide, which are formed as a result of the process, we "neutralized" in a special installation. It includes sorption filters filled with synthetic zeolite and modified natural mordenite, which act as a molecular sieve. They effectively absorb harmful substances, and only safe gas enters the environment, — explains the academic adviser of the developer, professor of the Department of Environmental Protection at the Perm Polytech Institute, Doctor of Technical Sciences Irina Glushankova.
During processing, the gas passes through the compressor section, condensers and separators, which makes it possible to neutralize some of the harmful components. Then it is purified from sulfur compounds and dried; at this stage, zeolite and modified natural mordenite are used. These substances help to quickly and efficiently purify gases. Scientists from the Perm Polytech University have also modernized an industrial tire recycling plant, which has lower energy and economic costs.
Электрическую и тепловую энергию можно получать с помощью установок, тип которых выбирают исходя из нужд предприятий. Например, для небольшого производства или жилых домов эффективно будет применять микротурбинные установки, а на более масштабных предприятиях – газотурбинные мини-ТЭЦ, считают исследователи.
Electric and heat energy can be obtained using installations, the type of which is selected based on the needs of enterprises. For example, for small production or residential buildings, it will be effective to use microturbine installations, and at larger enterprises - gas turbine mini-CHP plants, — the researchers say.