In 2022, the FIBER2FIBER project was initiated in partnership with the GAIKER technology center with the goal of creating a novel approach to utilize the textile component of tire recycling via chemical recycling.
Since it is currently not feasible to include all of the components of tires—which are mostly made of rubber, steel, and textile fibers—into the production chain of new tires, the management of tires necessitates ongoing research into novel ways to recycle them in various applications. The goal of this initiative is to achieve the circularity of textile fibers by reintegrating them into the production process.
Despite this significant advancement, the recycling of the textile fraction is still a work in progress because of its complexity. It is made up of a mixture of textile fibers with varying compositions, such as rayon, polyester, or polyamides, and it is also partially or completely contaminated by rubber particles from the mechanical recycling process used to separate the tire components.
Chemical recycling is offered as an additional technological solution in this regard. The NFVU textile fiber fraction is extremely complicated, so chemical recycling must be approached selectively—that is, by concentrating just on one kind of textile fiber. As a result, the percentage corresponding to polyester fibers of the PET type is the focus of this project.
