Clean Energy Group has always strived to do things differently and stand out from the rest. Now it’s developing an end-to-end solution for tyre recycling in Australia.

The Dandenong South company installed two pyrolysis machines in 2015 to convert tyres into an oil and carbon char product. 

Warren Tibbitts, Operations Manager, says the company is adding to the pyrolysis process by teaming up with Bruno Angelico of BXB Technologies to launch its Tyres-to-Hydrogen (T2H) project in 2023.

The new joint venture company, T2H, will be the only tyre recycler in Australia to use the patented BXB catalyst which reduces rubber to hydrogen and coke. The coke is used as a carburiser in the steel-making industry. The hydrogen is generated in the T2H system and can be used as fuel for a hydrogen-over-diesel generator to make on-site and grid zero-carbon electricity. 

The T2H team believes the introduction of the T2H process will make major inroads into recycling the thousands of end-of-life tyres in Australia.

Warren says the process has unlimited potential in its ability to turn the whole tyre into a recycled commodity. 

“In a normal pyrolysis process a tyre will split to 40 per cent oil, 40 per cent char. T2H will be able to process the tyre more efficiently using less energy, without any emissions, and process much higher volumes,” he says.

There’s a ready-made market for the coke and hydrogen export markets are easy to find. 

The joint venture is just one project Clean Energy Group is undertaking to help meet the current demands for recycling.

In 2021, the company purchased large mobile shredder units that can be dispatched to enable on-site tyre clean-ups in rural and council areas and to clear stockpiles. 

The CEG pyrolysis plant site at Dandenong South, Victoria, can collect, mobile shred, compress, de-bead and turn tyres into oil.

In September 2022, T2H is set to launch on-site compactor machines developed to save tyre retailers time, space, and money. The tyre retailers can obtain a machine that suits the volume of tyres they turn over. 

“The time and labour required to collect tyres from a retail location is a very big issue in the industry,” Warren says. “We’ve developed machinery that will help make the process more streamlined.”

Warren says there are several issues facing retailers in relation to tyre collection, including recently published requirements for tyre storage in Victoria by The Tyre Stewardship Australia and Environment Protection Authority that stipulate any on-site tyre storage more than five cubic metres is considered reportable waste.

Most retailers stack used tyres at the back of their premises in a loose lace pattern. However, about 50 per cent of each tyre is “space” which can fill with water when stacked outside posing a health and environmental hazard for staff.

Tyre collectors unpack the stack, carry and load tyres onto a truck then reverse the process at the depot. 

Until now, it’s been time-consuming and expensive in terms of labour, transport and fuel costs.

Warren says the new system approach of compacting, storing and loading means the overall collection productivity will improve by about 70 per cent.

“At the end of the day it’s a win win.” 

For more information, visit:  www.bxbtech.com.au

Waste Management Review is the specialist magazine for the waste, recycling and resource recovery sectors in Australia.

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