Continental and Pyrum Innovations recently entered a long-term purchase agreement and they have done this in order to acquire high-quality recovered carbon black (rCB) which will come from end-of-life tires.

The purpose behind this agreement is to integrate the rCB into the series production of passenger car tires, as this will have the beneficial effect of intensifying the collaboration between the two companies. This partnership has been established since 2022 and the predominant focus of it is to optimise and expand tire recycling through pyrolysis.

At the moment, Continental’s tires already incorporate a variety of recycled materials such as, rubber from mechanically processed end-of-life tires, recycled steel and finally, recycled polyester which comes from PET bottles.

An excellent reason to recycle carbon black from end-of-life tires, is that using this material helps to reduce the use of fossil raw materials and CO2 emissions. Carbon black makes up 15-20% of a passenger car tire’s composition and it is this material which is necessary for enhancing tire stability, strength and durability.

Head of sustainability at Continental Tires, Jorge Almeida, spoke about ‘the importance of recycled materials in tire production, emphasizing the need to transition from an “end-of-life” to an “end-of-use” tire concept.’ He also mentioned how, ‘This approach views the end of a tire’s intended use phase as the beginning of a new opportunity. “Together with Pyrum, we are developing highly efficient processes to recycle as many components and materials as possible from an end-of-use tire back into our production cycle.”’

CEO of Pyrum Innovations, Pascal Klein, mentioned, “To ensure that Continental can also use our recovered carbon black in the series production of passenger tires in the future, we are continuously working on its further development as part of a development partnership. Together, we have already succeeded in ensuring that all newly produced forklift tires at the Continental tire plant in Korbach, Hesse, contain our sustainable carbon black.”

Continental stated that it’s, ‘sustainability strategy includes goals to increase the use of sustainable materials in its tires to 100% by 2050. Recycled materials will play a crucial role in this strategy, with end-of-life tires becoming the raw material for new tires in a closed-loop system.’