The project LIFE14ENV/IT/000160"Recycling of textile fibres from end-of-life tires for production of new asphalts and plastic compounds" leads to industrial application of textile fibres reuse from the recovery of ELTs (End-of-Life Tyres).

The ETL (End Tires Life) is a waste and in current legislation can follow two different courses of treatment: recovery of materials or energy recovery

From the ETLs recovery the following materials are obtained: elastomeric rubber granules, harmonic steel, and textile fiber mainly composed of nylon, rayon etc. The granules of rubber and harmonic steel are recycled in multiple applications. The textile fiber, which represents about 10% of the PFU (considering the weight), has not any use and ends up in landfills or incinerators.

The Project LIFE14 ENV/IT/000160 objectives are::

• reducing of the waste amount that currently ends up in landfills or incineration;
• production of materials with added textile fibres by ELTs, with higher technical features;
• commercial exploitation of the recovered textile fibres;
• replicability of the activity and its results in the other EU countries.

The project LIFE 14 ENV/IT/000160 is the natural evolution of R&D activity supported by the POR MARCHE FESR 2007-2013, called: RTP Process - Design and development of a new product resulting from the reuse of textile fibres waste from the shredding process of ELTs.

From this research two particularly interesting applications came to light:

• Asphalt: the textile fibres properly dosed in street asphalt gives greater resistance to fatigue; that allows extending its average life;
• Compound: the textile fibres, combined with other plastics (eg. Polypropylene and similar materials), increase the impact strength on the compound; this materials is suitable for the production of each type of crankcase, automotive components and similar products.

Textile fibres represent about 10% by weight of the end-of-life tyres (ELT) and every year, in Europe, about 320,000 tons of dirty fibrous material must be disposed as special waste. This results in negative impacts on the environment, in terms of GHG emissions and pollution, economic losses and public costs.

REFIBRE action aims to overcome the two main existing barriers limiting ELT fibre recycling, these are:

1. the absence of useful and economically affordable applications for fibre reuse that makes it worthy of recycling, and
2. the lacking of proper treatment technologies for recovery of clean fibres.

The ultimate goal of this project is 100% valorisation of the ELT fibre material and finally transform it into a useful secondary raw material according to a “circular economy” thinking. This can be done only through a new appropriate treatment of the fibre aimed at improving its quality and features in order to prepare it for reuse.

Therefore, the specific objectives of the REFIBRE project are:

1. design, construction and validation of an innovative industrial pilot plant that enables ELT fibre treatment, cleaning and processing and makes the fibre recyclable and reusable;
2. production of new materials (plastic compounds, asphalts) modified with the fibre and demonstration of their superior technical features and economic suitability compared to traditional ones;
3. perform quantitative assessment of the environmental impact indicators by LCA and LCC aiming to prove cost/environmental effectiveness of the proposed new solutions;
4. promote the project and its results to stakeholders through targeted dissemination and networking (also with the support of the national association for recovery PFU, Ecopneus);
5. stimulate the stakeholders to the valorisation of the recycled fibre then following environmentally sustainable paths for material recovery in line with the EU waste legislation on ELV materials (2000/53/EC, DM 11/04/2011, D. Lgs. 152/06);
6. pave the way for replication and transfer of the results in other EU countries;
7. contribute to reach the target goals of the Roadmap for a Resource-Efficient Europe and the 7th EAP, i.e.: maximise recycling, limit incineration or landfilling to non-recyclable materials, and reduce environmental emissions and pollution.

The aim of the project LIFE14 ENV/IT/000160 is the industrialization of production on processes of asphalt and plastic compounds with added textile fibres by ELTs, in order to enter the market as a finished product.
The actions to be implemented are the following:

• Treatment of the textile fibres, coming out of the recovery ELTs, to make it compatible with the successive stages of processing;
• Audits of workability and optimization of mixtures in relation to the subsequent processing;
• Field-tests on physical / mechanical improvement of the finished product.

EXPECTED IMPACTS

REFIBRE contribute (impact only for the company)

• Reduction :
  • 200 tons/year landfill waste
  • 1,000 tons/year waste that goes to incineration
• GHG emission :
  • saving about 1,000 tons/year of CO2 - equivalent to 1000 air travels from Rome to Tokyo
  • saving 13,000 kg/year SO2 - equivalent to 1300 euro5 trucks for 60,000 km/year each
  • saving 1,600 kg/year of fine powders (PM2.5 , 5, 10) – comparable to 18 buses than run for 38,000 km/year each
• Use of recycled fibres as secondary raw material
  • Production of 6,000 tons/year of plastic PP compounds (20% by weight) - sufficient to make about 400,000 bins with 240 litre volume for waste garbage collection

alternative

• produce 400,000 tons/year of reinforced asphalt (0.3% by weight) - sufficient for the refurbishment of a 200 Km road

This section lists the key stages of the project, divided into phases carried out and steps whose output is estimated for the next three months