Schwalbe uses recycled old tyre material to produce new tyres

Schwalbe has closed the circle with the announcement it has achieve a major (interim) goal; producing the first new series tyre with material – recycled carbon black (rCB) – from Pyrum Innovations AG.

The used tyres are collected via the dealer network in specially made recycling boxes, picked up and transported to recycling partner Pyrum in Dillingen, Saarland. There, the pioneering company in the field of tyre recycling with its pyrolysis plant takes over the mechanical processing as well as the recycling of the used tyres. The process produces no waste whatsoever. Previously, bicycle tyres were incinerated and the raw materials were lost. The holistic recycling process saves 80% CO2.

Production of the first bicycle tyre to use rCB entirely instead of industrial carbon black is in full swing, with the tyre to be unveiled in June, and then available in stores.

Schwalbe is the world’s first and so far only manufacturer that not only takes back used tyres but also uses them to produce new tires. Success has been achieved through a long-standing cooperation and research partnership between Schwalbe, Pyrum and the Technical University of Cologne.

In the medium term, the family-owned company is pursuing the goal of successively expanding the use of rCB and producing even more Schwalbe tyres from recycled carbon black. To this end, intensive research is being conducted into adapting the rubber compounds.

Already more than 1,600 participants in the trade

The “Schwalbe Recycling System” was presented at Eurobike in July 2022, where it won the ‘Innovators’ Prize’. After the recycling project was launched in the pilot phase at the beginning of 2022 with around 50 participating specialist retailers, more than 1,600 are now already taking part across Germany. By December 2022, 400,000 tyres had already been recycled in this way.

How the Schwalbe recycling system works:

1) Drop off used tires at participating dealers.

2) Transport of full recycling boxes to recycling partner Pyrum Innovations

3) Shredding of used tires into:

– Rubber granulate

– steel

– fabric

4) Pyrum Thermolysis: Rubber granulate is converted into secondary raw materials (in pyrolysis oven at 700°C under oxygen exclusion)

– Process gas: Supplies complete plant with electricity

– Pyrolysis oil: Used in chemical industry as a substitute for crude oil

– Pyrolysis coke (rCB) goes to 5)

5) Recycled into new Schwalbe products

Speaking with ‘Tyre and Rubber Recycling‘ Frank Bohle, Managing Director of Ralf Bohle GmbH, added; “The response to our Schwalbe Recycling system is overwhelming. After starting with around 50 participating specialist dealers at the beginning of the year, there are already over 1,200 participants across Germany. We are starting production of the first bicycle tyre that uses Pyrum’s rCB. In the medium term, we are pursuing the goal of producing all Schwalbe tyres from recovered carbon black. We want to continue leading the way as pioneers with our innovative recycling solutions.”