The Mounting Pile of Used Tyres: A Crisis Unfolding
Pile of Used Tyres
When tires are discarded from fleet operation, they often end up on the side of the road and in landfills. Unfortunately, tires that are disposed of in this manner can be hazardous to the environment and human health. Luckily, there are many options available to reduce waste and preserve resources when it comes to reprocessing tires after they’ve become too worn or too old for use on a vehicle.
The first option for reducing the amount of waste tyres is to recycle them. Scrap tyres can be recycled into a variety of products, including materials that can be used to create new tires. The recovery rate of recycled tyres is now above 90% in most countries.
Another option is to convert waste tyres into energy, which can then be used in industrial processes such as cement kilns or as fuel in coal-burning power plants. Although this is a less preferable option, it can save money in the long run, especially if it is done at a large scale.
The Mounting Pile of Used Tyres: A Crisis Unfolding
Regardless of how a used tyre is processed, it can provide valuable information to help fleets make better decisions about their tire maintenance programs. By analyzing tires in the scrap pile, fleets can find out what types of tread designs are most cost-effective and whether new technologies and development might be effective for their operation.
By examining the tread wear pattern on a tyre, a fleet can also learn how much mileage a tyre has logged before it was discarded. A good analysis program can allow fleets to determine if certain operations or maintenance practices are contributing to excessive tire wear that may lead to premature tire removal.
A fleet should also take note of why tires were discarded. “It’s important to be able to identify what happened and why it occurred so that you can prevent this from happening again in the future,” says Bridgestone Americas.
According to the company, a good analysis program can include a simple spreadsheet that collects data on tires that have been discarded. This includes tire brand and type, as well as a brief description of the reason the tires were discarded. If a fleet has a retreading program, it should also be noted if retread and date codes are branded into the sidewall of the tires.
When a tire is discarded, the dealer is required to notify the local fire marshal and vector control authorities. This can be accomplished in a few different ways, depending on the jurisdiction.
The most common way to do this is to place a rubber band around the bottom of the tire so that it can be pulled out. A plastic bag can also be placed over the tyre, but this requires special permits.
It’s important to understand that tires can be contaminated with chemicals when they are discarded and not properly disposed of. This contamination can lead to a number of problems, such as the spread of diseases or the buildup of harmful chemicals on the tires’ interiors.