Physical and chemical characterization and upgrading of char derived from scrap tires by ultra-fast pyrolysis

In the search for a commercially efficient technology for solving the problem of scrap tires, pyrolysis is accepted as an environmentally and economically attractive recycling method to recover useful products from scrap tire waste. Ireton International Waste Management is commercially developing an ultra fast pyrolysis technology called the Continuous Ablative Reactor (CAR) which can heat solid particles to a high temperature (500–600°C) in under one second. The pyrolytic char obtained in this ultra fast pyrolysis process has been characterized and efforts were made to upgrade the product.;High temperature heat treatments (600–900°C) and oxidation processes using various agents (i.e., air, H2O2, HNO 3) present an opportunity to elevate the char quality and improve its commercial value. In this study, it was demonstrated that the production of highly activated char is possible by activation using steam or carbon dioxide. The adsorption properties of the activated char so obtained were found to be comparable to those of the commercial active carbons. Hence, ultra fast pyrolysis may provide a recycling alternative for waste tires and for the production of new adsorbents from low-cost waste material. (Abstract shortened by UMI.).