Tire recycling guide

What happens to old tires when they are scrapped?

Old tires are classified as hazardous waste in most countries and cannot be landfilled whole (banned in the EU since 2003) or shredded (banned in most EU countries since 2006). Collected end-of-life tires (ELTs) are processed into rubber crumb (used in playground surfaces, artificial turf, road asphalt, and insulation), tyre-derived fuel (TDF, burned in cement kilns), or pyrolysis oil. In the EU, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes require tire manufacturers and importers to fund collection and recycling. About 95% of ELTs are recovered in EU member states with mature EPR systems.

Why tires are regulated waste

A used tire is a complex composite material: typically 47% rubber (natural and synthetic), 22% carbon black, 15% steel, 6% textile cord, and 10% other chemicals including anti-ozonants, vulcanisation agents, and plasticisers. This mixture:

Does not biodegrade on any practical timescale
Creates a fire risk when stockpiled — tire fires are extremely difficult to extinguish and produce toxic smoke
Provides an ideal breeding habitat for disease-carrying mosquitoes when water pools in tire wells
Can leach zinc, cadmium, and aromatic compounds into groundwater

The EU Landfill Directive (1999/31/EC) banned whole-tyre landfilling in 2003 and shredded-tyre landfilling in 2006, which forced EU member states to develop alternative recovery pathways.

Key facts and figures

Statistic	Value
ELT generated in EU per year	~3.4 million tonnes
ELT recovery rate (EU member states)	~95%
Rubber in a typical car tire	~4.5 kg (natural + synthetic)
Steel in a typical car tire	~2–3 kg (bead wires + belt cords)
Carbon black in a typical car tire	~2 kg
EU landfill ban whole tire	2003
EU landfill ban shredded tire	2006

How old tires are recycled: the main routes

Recovery route	Process	End use	EU share (approx.)
Rubber crumb (granulate)	Shredded and cryogenically or ambient-ground to 0.5–4 mm rubber granules	Playground surfaces, artificial turf infill, sports tracks, road asphalt (rubberised asphalt), acoustic insulation, moulded products	~41% of ELTs by weight
Tyre-derived fuel (TDF)	Whole or shredded tires used as fuel supplement (37 MJ/kg, similar to coal)	Cement kilns (main consumer), paper mills, power plants — replacing coal and petcoke	~39% of ELTs by weight
Pyrolysis (chemical recycling)	Thermal decomposition at 400–600°C in absence of oxygen, yields oil, carbon black, steel, and gas	Pyrolysis oil → fuel oil or chemical feedstock; recovered carbon black → filler in new products; steel wire → steel mills	~5% and growing
Devulcanisation	Breaking the sulfur cross-links that give vulcanised rubber its structure, restoring processability	Reclaimed rubber for new rubber products — though mechanical properties are lower than virgin rubber	Niche — commercial scale limited
Material reuse (retreading)	The tire carcass is inspected and rebuffed; a new tread is applied and cured onto the old casing	Retreaded tires for trucks, buses, and aircraft — extends tire life significantly	~10% of truck tire market
Landfill / illegal dumping	N/A — prohibited in EU since 2003 (whole) and 2006 (shredded)	None — environmental hazard: fire risk, mosquito breeding, groundwater contamination	Residual illegal fraction only

Rubber crumb in detail

Rubber crumb is produced by two main grinding methods:

Ambient grinding — tires are shredded at room temperature using steel mills. Produces coarser granules (2–20 mm). Lower energy cost, suitable for larger crumb.
Cryogenic grinding — tires are frozen with liquid nitrogen (−120°C) and then shattered. Produces finer, rounder granules (0.5–2 mm) with cleaner steel separation. Higher energy cost, used where fine particle size matters (eg. powder for moulded goods).

One controversy around rubber crumb concerns its use as infill in artificial turf football pitches. Some studies have raised concerns about potential leaching of PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons). The EU ECHA risk assessment (2021) concluded that rubber crumb from ELT is safe for use in sports pitches under normal conditions, but ongoing monitoring is recommended.

Pyrolysis — the future of tire recycling?

Pyrolysis converts rubber into:

Pyrolysis oil (35–45% yield) — usable as fuel oil or further refined into petrochemical feedstock. Some companies are closing the loop and using it to manufacture new synthetic rubber.
Recovered carbon black (rCB, 30–35% yield) — can partially replace virgin carbon black in tire manufacturing. rCB quality is currently lower than N234/N330-grade virgin carbon black but improving with purification technology.
Steel wire (10–15% yield) — sold to steel mills as scrap.
Pyrolysis gas (10–15% yield) — typically used on-site to power the pyrolysis reactor.

Major tire manufacturers (Michelin, Bridgestone, Continental, Goodyear) have set targets to use 40–80% sustainable materials by 2030–2050, and all are investing in pyrolysis-derived raw material supply chains.

How to dispose of tires legally

Take your used tires to a registered tire retailer when fitting new tires — most retailers are required by EPR schemes to accept old tires at no extra charge or a small handling fee.
Contact your local authority recycling centre — many municipal waste sites accept a limited number of tires per household per visit.
If disposing of a large number of tires (fleet, farm, etc.), contact a licensed waste management company with an ELT treatment permit.
Never burn, bury, or dump tires illegally — penalties range from fines to criminal prosecution in most jurisdictions.

Retreading: extending tire life before recycling

Retreading is not recycling — it is reuse. A sound tire carcass can be retreaded when the original tread wears out, provided the structure (sidewall, bead, belts, inner liner) is intact. Retreaded tires are legal and common on commercial vehicles; approximately 40% of truck tires in Europe are retreads. A retreaded tire uses approximately 30–40% less oil than manufacturing a new tire.

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Last reviewed: 2026-06-21