News from Notch Consulting, Inc.

Notch will join the discussion for a new webinar, Recovered Carbon Black for Bankers & Investors. The time is Tuesday, January 24 at 8 AM EST (14:00 CET). The webinar will provide an introduction to carbon black, tire pyrolysis, and recovered carbon black, coupled with a discussion of investment criteria for the sector. Speakers include Martin von Wolfersdorff on rCB and Shane Perl of ALPEN Group on feedstocks. Follow the link to join the conversation!

GRI Tires (Global Rubber Industries Pvt. Ltd.) of Sri Lanka has introduced a new environmentally friendly tire, the  Ultimate Green XT solid tire for the material handling industry. According to the company, the tire contains 42.8% sustainable materials, including both bio-sourced and recycled materials. The tire is manufactured from natural rubber, silica, recycled carbon black, and reclaimed rubber from used tires. In addition, the tire provides a higher energy efficiency due to its 20.4% lower rolling resistance than conventional tires, according to GRI. The tire is intended for use on electric or internal combustion forklifts. It is a premium tire, intended for 24 hours per day, 3 shift operations, where it offers lower heat build-up and higher endurance for all surface conditions and intense operating environments.

The Ultimate Green XT tire features a tread compound that is reinforced with highly dispersible silica and no carbon black, which reduces abrasion loss. In the carcass and base of the tire, GRI uses recycled carbon black. Natural oil is used instead of petroleum-based oil and GRI has pioneered the use of carbon nanotubes in the black version of the tire.

Orion Engineered Carbons announced today it has partnered with RISE Research Institutes of Sweden in a project to develop and produce renewable carbon black. Under the collaboration, traditional carbon black feedstock will be replaced with pyrolysis oil from biomass oil to produce a carbon-neutral carbon black. Orion plans to test the process using its small-scale furnace reactor in Kalscheuren, Germany and will explore ways to upscale the process to match market demands. Additionally, using a pilot-scale reactor at its site in Piteå, Sweden, RISE will evaluate the use of electrofuels, such as plasma or hydrogen from electrolysis, as sustainable heat sources for the carbon black process. According to the press release, RISE has already shown that it could be economically feasible to produce carbon black using pyrolysis oil from wood-derived feedstock. Orion’s project goal is to validate commercial production based on this research.

Orion Engineered Carbons has announced the commercial launch of ECORAX® Nature, a new family of products developed for rubber applications utilizing industrial grade, plant-based oils, which are a renewable, non-fossil derived feedstock. ECORAX® Nature 100 is the first highly reinforcing carbon black grade made from renewable feedstocks which can be used in critical tire tread construction. The product is currently being tested by customers and will go into high volume manufacturing in the second half of 2022.

In a press release announcing the launch, Orion CEO Corning Painter said, “This launch is an important milestone in our strategy to develop commercially viable, carbon black products that drive sustainability across the value chain.

Scandinavian Enviro Systems AB recently announced plans for the construction of a major waste tire recycling facility in Sweden that the company says can process half of the country’s annual end-of-life tires. The company said it was preparing consultation documentation regarding the construction of the plant in Lillesjoe, in Uddevalla Municipality, and expected to submit a permit application to local authorities by Q3 2021. The company did not disclose the financial details of the project.

The project will have the capacity to recycle a maximum of 60,000 metric tons of waste tires per year. The new facility will be in addition to the company’s existing wholly owned recycling plant at Åsensbruk, in Mellerud Municipality, with a permit for recycling a maximum of 15,000 tonnes of tyres per year. This plant has been in operation since 2013. Enviro said that the establishment of the plant will depend on several factors, such as securing access to end-of-life tires and agreements covering deliveries of recovered materials, the company said. Enviro tire recycling facilities employ a patented technology to recover carbon black, oil and steel from end-of-life vehicle tires.

On May 25, Birla Carbon (Mumbai, India & Marietta, GA) and Circtec, a leader in pyrolysis technology based in the UK, signed a long-term supply agreement for a new line of “sustainable carbonaceous materials” made from recycled tires. The new product line will be called Continua.

To support the venture, Circtec is setting up a new flagship production plant in the Netherlands based on the company’s proprietary production process. According to the company, this will be the largest, most sustainable and most efficient pyrolysis plant in Europe. It is expected to begin production by the end of 2022. While putting millions of tires through the pyrolysis recycling process, the Circtec plant will have a total annual production capacity of 73,000 tons of Sustainable Carbonaceous Materials by 2026, making it the largest single source of Sustainable Carbonaceous Materials and also of product-grade renewable fuels from the pyrolysis of end-of-life tires.

Commenting on the association, Dr. Santrupt B. Misra, Chief Executive Officer, Birla Carbon, said in a press release, “Our commitment to sustainability over the last decade has seen Birla Carbon bring more and more innovation-focused solutions to our customers. This partnership with Circtec is a big step towards product circularity in our value chain and bringing our customers’ sustainability aspirations closer to reality. Through our collaboration with Circtec, we will become the largest suppliers of Sustainable Carbonaceous Materials in the world, weaving together technology expertise and customized solutions”.

Allen Timpany, co-founder and CEO of Circtec, said in the press release, “Our long-term alliance with Birla Carbon is instrumental to our objective to build a leading global business in the low-carbon circular economy.”

A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of Circtec’s process, conducted according to ISO 14040 and ISO 14044, demonstrates that, at full capacity, 228,000 tonnes of direct and indirect CO2 emissions will be eliminated on an annual basis when compared to the conventional carbon black process.

Bolder Industries (Boulder, Colorado) and Continental Carbon Company (Houston, Texas) this week announced a co-marketing agreement to commercialize a new line of Continental’s furnace black products that will incorporate Bolder Black’s recovered carbon black in the blend. This is a first in the carbon black industry and follows five years of research and development work, according to Bolder. The line will include N550, N650, N660, N762, and N774 grades, with markets in both the rubber and plastics markets. Customers will be able to select pre-blended fillers customized at various ratios. Bolder’s BolderBlack is produced from 100% post-consumer or post-industrial tires and rubber scrap. Continental Carbon is one of the largest carbon black producers in the United States.

“We have always believed in partnering with the traditional carbon black manufacturers to support the end customer. We can now provide a unique solution to tire companies, industrial rubber goods, and plastics manufacturers ​at a large scale,” said Tony Wibbeler, founder and CEO of Bolder Industries, in a press release announcing the venture. On October 27, 2020, Bolder Industries agreed to merge with GigCapital2, Inc. and become a publicly traded company.

“We have been impressed by the quality, consistency, and manufacturing prowess of Bolder Industries and strongly believe this is an​ important step toward a more profitable and sustainable future for the rubber and plastics industry. This strategic partnership allows us to offer soft-grade blends into a marketplace that desperately needs to provide a closed-loop solution,” said CCC President Dennis Hetu.