Waste Tire Pyrolysis to Fuel Oil

Core Principle

Waste tire oil refining relies on oxygen-free / low-oxygen pyrolysis. Under sealed micro-negative pressure and a temperature of 320–450°C, long rubber molecular chains are broken down into oil and gas vapor. The vapor is condensed into pyrolysis oil; non-condensable gas is recycled for heating; solid residues are separated into carbon black and steel wire.

Standard Process Flow (6 Steps)

1. Pretreatment

• Sorting and impurity removal: Eliminate tires containing chlorine and other impurities.

• Bead wire removal: Separate tire bead steel wire with a wire drawing machine.

• Crushing: Whole tires are crushed into 2–5cm rubber blocks (batch type), or ground into rubber powder (continuous type).

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2. Sealed Feeding

• Batch type: Whole tires/rubber blocks are fed into horizontal pyrolysis reactor via hydraulic or grab machine, then seal the furnace door tightly.

• Continuous type: Rubber powder is continuously fed into the pyrolysis furnace through sealed screw conveyor.

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3. Pyrolysis (Core Process)

• Environment: Micro-negative pressure, oxygen-free condition

• Temperature rise: Gas precipitates at 180°C; maximum oil output at 320–350°C; pyrolysis completes at 380–450°C.

• Reaction: Rubber decomposes into oil-gas vapor + carbon black + steel wire; pyrolysis gas (H₂, CH₄, etc.) is recycled for combustion heating.

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4. Condensation & Oil-Gas Separation

• Multi-stage condensation: Gas separator → vertical/horizontal condenser → condensing tower → oil-water separation.

• Liquid phase: Crude pyrolysis oil (yield: about 40%–50%).

• Gas phase: Non-condensable gas → desulfurization & purification → recycled to furnace for combustion (self-sustaining energy supply).

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5. Solid Residue Treatment

• Water-cooled slag discharge → magnetic separation for steel wire (proportion: about 10%–15%).

• Crude carbon black (proportion: about 30%–35%): Can be ground and activated to produce modified carbon black.

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6. Environmental Purification

• Pyrolysis gas: Desulfurization and deodorization (remove hydrogen sulfide).

• Flue gas: Low-nitrogen combustion + double-alkali desulfurization + bag dust removal to meet emission standards.

Comparison of Main Process Types

Batch Type

• Capacity: 5–15 tons per day per reactor

• Advantages: Low investment, easy operation, suitable for small and medium-scale production

• Disadvantages: Batch production, low efficiency, manual slag discharge

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Continuous Type

• Capacity: 20–50 tons per day

• Advantages: Continuous stable operation, high automation, low energy consumption, superior environmental performance

• Disadvantages: High equipment investment, rubber powder pretreatment required

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Typical Products & Yield (Per Ton of Waste Tire)

• Crude pyrolysis oil: 400–500kg → Used as fuel oil or further refined by distillation

• Pyrolysis gas: 50–100Nm³ → Self-use for heating

• Carbon black: 300–350kg → For modification, rubber industry and building materials

• Steel wire: 100–150kg → Recycled for steelmaking

• Overall resource utilization rate: About 95%

Safety & Compliance Key Points

• Must operate under sealed micro-negative pressure and oxygen-free condition for explosion-proof and leakage prevention.

• Strict control over temperature, pressure, explosion protection, fire fighting, desulfurization and dust removal.

• Environmental impact assessment, safety assessment and sewage discharge permit are mandatory. Primitive crude oil refining is strictly prohibited.

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