Waste Recovery and Sustainable Development. A Case Study of Material Development from Used Tires in Africa

This paper outlines a mechanical transformation process for rubber recycling, demonstrating the development of a new material from used tires. With the crumbs obtained using a crusher-compactor, a novel material for the manufacture of O-rings has been developed, with properties close to those found on the market. The process includes an experimental methodology of a sulfur vulcanization system choice and the quantification of ingredients, as well as the experimental determination of cure parameters. Mechanical tests on the samples completed the work by providing the mechanical characteristics of both unaged and aged (thermo-oxidative ageing) novel material. This process has a high potential for sustainable development and industrialization, making it a valuable contribution to the recycling of rubber in African developing countries.

Bearing capacity of circular footings on multi-layered sand-waste tire shreds reinforced with geogrids

The presence of waste tires poses an environmental challenge as they occupy a significant amount of land and are expensive to dispose in landfills.However,reusing waste tires can address this issue when waste tires are used in geotechnical applications.To determine the viability of this approach,laboratoryscale tests were conducted to investigate load-bearing capacity of circular footings on sand-tire shred(STS)mixtures with shredded waste tire contents of 5%e15%by weight and three different widths of shreds.The investigation focused on analyzing the thickness of layers composed of STS mixtures,the soil cap,and the impact of geogrids on bearing capacity.The results indicate that a specific mixture of sand and tire shreds provides the highest footing-bearing capacity.In addition,the optimal shred content and size were found to be 10%by weight and 2 cm×10 cm,respectively.Furthermore,for a given tire shred width,a particular length provides the largest bearing capacity.The results agree well with that of previous research conducted by the first author and his colleagues in direct shear and California bearing ratio(CBR)tests.The primary finding of this research is that the use of two-layered STS mixtures reinforced by geogrids significantly enhances the bearing capacity.

Mechanical properties and damage evolution characteristics of waste tire steel fiber-modified cemented paste backfill

During the process of constructional backfill mining,the cemented paste backfill(CPB)typically exhibits a high degree of brittleness and limited resistance to failure.In this study,the mechanical and damage evolution characteristics of waste tire steel fiber(WTSF)-modified CPB were studied through uniaxial compression tests,acoustic emission(AE)tests,and scanning electron microscopy(SEM).The results showed that the uniaxial compressive strength(UCS)decreased when the WTSF content was 0.5%,1%,and 1.5%.When the WTSF content reached 1%,the UCS of the modified CPB exhibited a minimal decrease(0.37 MPa)compared to that without WTSF.When the WTSF content was 0.5%,1%,and 1.5%,peak strain of the WTSF-modified CPB increased by 18%,31.33%,and 81.33%,while the elastic modulus decreased by 21.31%,26.21%,and 45.42%,respectively.The addition of WTSF enhances the activity of AE events in the modified CPB,resulting in a slower progression of the entire failure process.After the failure,the modified CPB retained a certain level of load-bearing capacity.Generally,the failure of the CPB was dominated by tensile cracks.After the addition of WTSF,a gradual increase in the proportion of tensile cracks was observed upon loading the modified CPB sample to the pore compaction stage.The three-dimensional localization of AE events showed that the WTSF-modified CPB underwent progressive damage during the loading,and the samples still showed good integrity after failure.Additionally,the response relationship between energy evolution and damage development of WTSF-modified CPB during uniaxial compression was analyzed,and the damage constitutive model of CPB samples with different WTSF contents was constructed.This study provides a theoretical basis for the enhancement of CPB modified by adding WTSF,serving as a valuable reference for the design of CPB constructional backfill.

Development and Validation of a Scaled Electric Combat Vehicle Tire Model

Pneumatic tire modeling and validation have been the topic of several research papers, however, most of these papers only deal with pneumatic passenger and truck tires. In recent years, wheeled-scaled vehicles have gained lots of attention as a feasible testing platform, nonetheless up to the authors’ knowledge there has been no research regarding the use of scaled tires and their effect on the overall vehicle performance characteristics. This paper presents a novel scaled electric combat vehicle tire model and validation technique. The pro-line lockdown tire size 3.00 × 7.35 is modeled using the Finite Element Analysis (FEA) technique and several materials including layered membrane, beam elements, and Mooney-Rivlin for rubber. The tire-rim assembly is then described, and the rigid body analysis is presented. The tire is then validated using an in-house custom-made static tire testing machine. The tire test rig is made specifically to test the pro-line tire model and is designed and manufactured in the laboratory. The tire is validated using vertical stiffness and footprint tests in the static domain at different operating conditions including several vertical loads. Then the tire is used to perform rolling resistance and steering analysis including the rolling resistance coefficient and the cornering stiffness. The analysis is performed at different operating conditions including longitudinal speeds of 5, 10, and 15 km/h. This tire model will be further used to determine the tractive and braking performance of the tire. Furthermore, the tire test rig will also be modified to perform cornering stiffness tests.

Tread Wear and Footprint Geometrical Characters of Truck Bus Radial Tires

Wear and mileage performance are the foremost performances for truck bus radial (TBR) tires. There are a lot of researches about the tire wear performance as well as the contact patch phenomenon by using finite element analysis (FEA) method or testing. But there is little published data on the correlations between the footprint geometry and the tread wear performance of tires. In this paper, an experiment on tire-ground performance of TBR tires is carried out by using Tekscan. The real-time changes of contact-area pressure distribution that occurred during the process of continuous load and unload are recorded. Three types of tires that act differently in behavior under normal usage are analyzed. A new method of researching in tire tread wear, which focuses on the geometrical characters of the footprint, is put forward. The experimental results of the three tires are described by using footprint geometrical characters. On the basis of studying the changing laws of footprint geometrical characters during the loading process and considering consumer survey and factory feedback information, the correlations between the geometrical character of footprints and tread destruction form are built. The analyzed results show that a greater contact area coefficient and a steady coefficient of contact result in a better wear performance for TBR tires. The footprint-shape coefficient changing laws in the process of loading are found to have a very good coincidence with the tread wear of the three types of tires. Tires with a smaller footprint-shape coefficient are likely to have an average tread wear while avoiding the shoulder wear first. The proposed research provides a new solution to predict tire-ground performance at the point of footprint and several useful references for improving tire design.

Surface Modification of Pyrolytic Carbon Black from Waste Tires and Its Use as Pigment for Offset Printing Ink

Pyrolysis has the potential of transforming waste into valuable products. Pyrolytic carbon black (PCB) is one of the most important products resulting from the pyrolysis of used tires. One of the most significant applica-tions of modified pyrolytic carbon black is its use as pigment for offset printing ink to obtain high added values. Inverse gas chromatography (IGC) results show that a large quantity of inorganic matters and carbonaceous deposit are removed by treating the pyrolytic carbon black with nitric acid solution. Plenty of active sites originally occu-pied by inorganic ash and coke are recovered. The surface energy of pyrolytic carbon black (TWPC)modified by titanate-coupling agent-especially the specific interaction γ sspdetermined by the specific probe molecule, tolu-ene-shows the strong interaction between the TWPC and the synthetic resins. The offset printing ink performance confirms the IGC prediction. And TWPC has the great potential of applications in printing ink industry as pigment.

Intensification of adsorption process by using the pyrolytic char from waste tires to remove chromium(Ⅵ) from wastewater

Pyrolysis has the potential of transforming waste into valuable recyclable products. Pyrolytic char(PC) is one of the most important products from the pyrolysis of used tires. One of the most significant applications for pyrolytic char recovered is used for the removal of Cr(Ⅵ) in the wastewater effluent to control waste by waste. The surface chemistry properties of surface element distribution / concentration and chemical structure were examined for the pyrolytic char and the commercial activated carbon(CAC) respectively. The results showed that surfaces of PC possesses a large amount of ester and hydrocarbon graft, whereas there are mainly carbon functional components of C—OH, C O and COOH on the surface of CAC. Therefore the surface electronegativity of PC is lower than that of CAC in the water. The repulsive interactions between the surfaces of PC and the negatively charged Cr(Ⅵ) ion are weaker than that of CAC, which results in an intensification of the adsorption process by the utilization of PC. The adsorption isotherms of Cr(Ⅵ) ion on the two kinds of carbons were determined experimentally. The larger adsorption amount on the PC in the case of Cr(Ⅵ) may be attributed mainly to its special surface micro-chemical environment. The mechanism of the removal Cr(Ⅵ) from aqueous solution was assumed to be the integration of adsorption and redox reaction. The adsorption was the rate-controlled step for Cr(Ⅵ) removal. The adsorption of Cr(Ⅵ) was identified as pseudo-second-order kinetics. The rate constants of adsorption were evaluated.

Derived oil production by catalytic pyrolysis of scrap tires

Scrap tires were pyrolyzed in a continuously stirred batch reactor in the presence and absence of catalysts. The maximum yield of derived oil was up to 55.65 wt%at the optimum temperature, 500 °C. The catalytic pyrolysis was performed using 1.0 wt%（on a scrap tire weight basis） of catalysts based on ZSM‐5, USY,β, SAPO‐11, and ZSM‐22. The oil products were characterized using simula‐tion distillation, elemental analysis, and gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry. The results show that using a catalyst can increase the conversion of scrap tires to gas and decrease char by‐products;the yield of derived oil remains unchanged or a little lower. The oils derived from catalytic pyrolysis had H/C ratios of 1.55–1.65 and contained approximately 70–75 wt%light oil, 0.3–0.58 wt%S and 0.78–1.0 wt%N. Catalysts with high acid strengths and appropriate pore sizes, such as ZSM‐5, USY,β, and SAPO‐11, increased the amount of single‐ring aromatics in the light‐middle‐fraction oil to 45 wt%. The derived oil can therefore be used as a petrochemical feedstock for producing high‐value‐added chemical products or fuel oil.

Prediction of Deformation and Footprint of High-speed Rotating Radial Tires

In this research,the tire deformations due to rotation are divided into three parts:tread,belt and carcass.Tread deformation is obtained by using a rotating hollow cylinder model,belt expansion is calculated according to the laminated composite shell theory,and a formula of dynamic equilibrium profile is built to investigate carcass deformation.Moreover,a simple method is used to predict the footprint changes caused by tire deformation.Results show that a large deformation is occurring at tire shoulder,a smaller one at tread centre,and the shoulder deformations are mostly caused by carcass.Length of footprint side edges increase with tire rolling speed increasing.The predicted tread,belt,carcass deformations and footprint changes are in good agreement with finite element analysis results.The proposed method and the results will offer a helpful guidance to tire and vehicle engineers.

Numerical Estimation of the Uneven Wear of Passenger Car Tires

Tire wear is a very complicated phenomenon that is influenced by various factors such as tire material, structure, vehicle and road conditions. In order to evaluate tire wear, a method for measuring tire wear using the intensity of reflected light was presented?[1]. It comprises applying a single layer of reflected paint to a tread surface by spraying, and then measuring the intensity of light reflected from a matrix of blocks on the unworn tire. In this paper, a numerical technique for predicting the uneven wear of passenger car tire is presented. The uneven tire wear produced in wheel alignment condition with vehicle speed, camber angle, and toe angle is predicted by the frictional dynamic rolling analysis of 3D patterned tire model. The proposed numerical technique is illustrated through the method of paint testing the wear on the tread surface of a tire.

NONLINEAR ANALYSIS OF PNEUMATIC RADIAL TIRES VIA PIECEWISE RAYLEIGH-RITZ TECHNIQUE

Based on the Sanders thin shell theory and Reddy's higher order shell theory,a general refined shell theory is developed for the analysis of stresses and deformations ofpneumatic radial tires of composite construction. For easy and efficient simulation of the tire apiecewise Rayleigh-Ritz technique is proposed and applied to get a numerical solution to thenonlinear structural problem. Bezier polynomials are used to approximate both the geometry of thesurface of reference and displacement fields of the tires. Stress distributions and deformations ofthe tires subjected to uniform inflation pressure are computed and discussed in details. Fromcomparison of the present results with the numerical predictions by 3D finite element method, it hasbeen shown that the present solution procedure is accurate and applicable to much complicatedtime-consuming nonlinear analysis for the high quality tire.

Aerodynamic Characteristics of Isolated Loaded Tires with Different Tread Patterns: Experiment and Simulation

The current research of tire aerodynamics mainly focus on the isolated and simplified tread tire.Compared with the real complex pattern tire,the tread pattern structure and deformed profile of a loaded tire has a greatly influence on tire aerodynamic drag.However,the mechanisms of the isolated loaded tires with different tread patterns effects on the aerodynamic drag are subjects worthy of discussion.The purpose of this study is to experimentally and compu-tationally investigate the aerodynamic characteristics of three tires 185/65 R14 with different patterns under loaded.A wind tunnel test model was first established using three-dimensional(3D)printing with a ratio of 1:1,and the pres-sure coefficients C_(p) of the three tires with different patterns are measured.The paper then conducted computational fluid dynamics(CFD)simulations for analyzing the pressure and flow characteristics.The accuracy of CFD simulation is verified by comparing the simulation results with the test results of pressure coefficients C_(p),and they are of good consistency.While,the general analysis of pressure coefficients C_(p) results of the three tires indicates high-pressure area on the windward surface,and occurrence of low-pressure area on the leeward surface,the pressure coefficients C_(p) of all three tires decreased firstly and then increased along in the air flow direction.The authors finally analyzed the effect of tread patterns on the flow field around the tire and revealed the differences between flow characteristics and aerodynamic drag.The results show that,angle of tire lateral groove has great effect on the flow field characteristics such that;the more the angle of lateral groove agrees with the air flow direction,the less the flow separation and flow vortices,and a minimum observable aerodynamic drag.The research provides a guidance for the design of low aerodynamic drag tires,and helps to illustrate the impact of tire aerodynamics on the car body in the future.

Adsorption Characteristics of Activated Carbon Derived from Scrap Tires for Malachite Green:Influence of Small Organics

The influence of small organics on the adsorption characteristics of activated carbon produced from industrial pyrolytic tire char(APTC)for malachite green(MG) was investigated by a batch method. Phenol was chosen as the representative of small organics. The effects of phenol on adsorption equilibrium, kinetics and thermodynamics were studied systematically. The results indicate that APTC is a potential adsorbent for MG. The presence of phenol decreases the adsorption capacity of APTC for MG, but improves the rate of adsorption, while the adsorption characteristics, such as equilibrium, kinetics and thermodynamics are not affected by phenol. The adsorption equilibrium data follow Langmuir isotherm and the kinetic data are well described by the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The adsorption process follows intra-particle diffusion model and the adsorption rate is determined by more than one process. Thermodynamic study shows that the adsorption is an endothermic and spontaneous physisorption process.

Global-Local Finite Element Analysis for Predicting Separation in Cord-Rubber Composites of Radial Truck Tires

A global-local finite element modeling technique is employed in this paper to predict the separation in steel cord-rubber composite materials of radial truck tires. The local model uses a finite element analysis in conjunction with a glob-al-local technique in ABAQUS. A 3-dimensional finite element local model calculates the maximum cyclic shear strain of an interface between steel cord and rubber materials at the carcass ply shoulder region. It is found that the maximum cyclic shear strain is reliable as a result of the analysis of carcass ply separation in radial truck tires. Using the analysis of the local model, a study of the cyclic shear strain is performed in the shoulder region and used to deter-mine the carcass ply separation. The effect of the change of carcass ply design on the separation in steel cord-rubber composite materials of radial truck tires is discussed.

Chemical Modification of Scraped Tires through Grafting with 2-Acrylamido-2-methylpropansulfonic Acid

Scrap vulcanized rubber is amongst a bigger waste polymers. It does not decompose easily owing to its cross linked structure. Modification of scrap tires powder by the grafting with 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid (AMPS) is described. The grafting is achieved through free radical initiation. The effects of different amount of monomer and initiator were examined. Also the influence of reaction time and temperature were investigated. The grafted waste rubber was characterized by FT/IR, SEM and DSC measurements. The proposed mechanism of the grafting reaction is discussed. From DSC and SEM studies of WR-g-AMPS compared with PAMPS and WR, the results show that the particle size and crystallinity were enhanced for the grafted copolymers. The obtained modified scraped tires will used as an ion exchanger for the future applications.

Utilization of waste vehicle tires in concrete and its effect on the corrosion behavior of reinforcing steels

The mechanical and physical properties of concrete specimens obtained from replacing natural coarse aggregate with waste vehi- cle rubber tires at levels of 2vol%, 5vol%, 7vol%, and 10vol% were studied, and the corrosion behavior of reinforcing steels was investigated in these specimens. Corrosion rates were determined by measuring the galvanic current between steel-reinforced concrete specimens both with and without chloride addition. The change in electrode potential of reinforcing steels in these concrete specimens was measured daily for a period of 60 d in accordance with the testing method in ASTM C876. The results show that the use of waste vehicle tires in concrete instead of coarse aggregate decreases the mechanical strength of the specimens, and increases the corrosion rates of the reinforcing steels embedded in the concretes.

Prediction of Restriction Width of Carcass by Belts for Radial Tires :Theory, Experiment and Simulation

The restriction width of carcass by the belts( RWCB) as an important parameter of radial tire design has been neglected for a long time. In order to improve the accuracy and efficiency of tire profile design,the calculating method of RWCB is proposed. The equilibrium profile is calculated by geometric model and variational approach,based on it,the predicted model of RWCB is developed for tire design. Finally,four different designs of 12R22.5 tires are investigated by experiment and finite element method,which is used to validate the accuracy of the theoretical method. Results indicate that experimental and finite element analysis results are found to be in good agreement with theoretical results; linear relationships are existed between the cord length and RWCB,and also existed between the position of belt and RWCB; tires designed by the methods have smaller and more uniform displacement,so the method can be used for tire optimized design.

Finite Element Simulation of Radial Tire Building and Shaping Processes Using an Elasto-Viscoplastic Model

The comprehensive tire building and shaping processes are investigated through the finite element method(FEM)in this article.The mechanical properties of the uncured rubber from different tire components are investigated through cyclic loading-unloading experiments under different strain rates.Based on the experiments,an elastoviscoplastic constitutive model is adopted to describe themechanical behaviors of the uncured rubber.The distinct mechanical properties,including the stress level,hysteresis and residual strain,of the uncured rubber can all be well characterized.The whole tire building process(including component winding,rubber bladder inflation,component stitching and carcass band folding-back)and the shaping process are simulated using this constitutive model.The simulated green tire profile is in good agreement with the actual profile obtained through 3D scanning.The deformation and stress of the rubber components and the cord reinforcements during production can be obtained fromthe FE simulation,which is helpful for judging the rationality of the tire construction design.Finally,the influence of the parameter“drum width”is investigated,and the simulated result is found to be consistent with the experimental observations,which verifies the effectiveness of the simulation.The established simulation strategy provides some guiding significance for the improvement of tire design parameters and the elimination of tire production defects.

Effect of the Substitution of Sand by Rubber of Waste Tires on the Mechanical Properties of Hydraulic Concrete and Exposure to Gamma Radiation

For a long time and until now, rubber is the most used material for the manufacture of tires for motor vehicles. Unfortunately, once the tire meets its life cycle, the remaining rubber cannot be recycled, so the tires are discarded in collection centers and often in clandestine dumps. This represents a serious environmental problem because, in one case, these waste tires become breeding grounds for insects and wildlife that is harmful to humans. In the second case, the tires are burned, releasing highly damaging gases into the atmosphere. On the other hand, concrete is worldwide the construction material par excellence. It is basically composed of cement, gravel and sand. Mixing these three components in different proportions, their mechanical strength in compression can be increased. However, due to its fragile nature, concrete, once a crack is formed, it rapidly advances by fragmenting the material and producing its rapid collapse. In the present work, in order contribute to the care of the environment as well as to modify the fracture mode of the concrete, rubber particles obtained from waste tires were used as sand substitute in hydraulic concrete. In addition, rubber modified samples concrete were lately exposed to 70 kGy of gamma radiation in order to study the effects of this radiation on the mechanical deformation of concrete. The results showed a decrease in the mechanical properties of the concrete with rubber particles with respect to the traditional concrete itself. However, such decreases were offset by the fact that samples with rubber addition do not collapses as fast as the free rubber samples. The acquired data pave the way for research with great benefits, such as the use of recycled tires in concrete for its fracture mode modification in a beneficial way, as well as a possible decrease in the cost of concrete.

Catalytic oxidation of pentanethiol on basic nitrogen doped carbon hollow spheres derived from waste tires

A series of basic nitrogen doped carbon hollow spheres(p-N-C) catalysts derived from waste tires were prepared by a green, facile and environmental “leavening” strategy for the catalytic oxidation of pentanethiol. Compared to pristine carbon, the p-N-C has a higher surface curvature conducive to the enrichment of substrates, leading to an excellent catalytic performance. This increased surface curvature of p-N-C was fabricated on the synergistic effect of two foaming agents((NH4)2 C2 O4 and NaHCO3), and the released gas also endows the spherical shell of p-N-C with a hierarchical porous structure, promoting the accessibility of active sites with pentanethiol. Pyridine-like and pyrrolic-like nitrogen atoms were investigated as reactive sites on the p-N-C to accelerate the electron transfer from sulfur to active surface oxygen and enhance the adsorption/oxidation process. As a result, the optimal p-N-C catalyst exhibits superior adsorption and oxidation performance(99.9%) of pentanethiol, outperforming the “unleavened”catalyst(20.8%). This work offers a new avenue for the fabrication of highly efficient materials for the desulfurization of fuel.