Performance of surface modified pyrolytic carbon black in rubber compounding

Abstract

Waste tyres pyrolysis (WT- pyrolysis) process provides a sustainable solution for waste tyre recycling. Value addition to pyrolytic tyre char (PT char) is particularly essential because it will reduce enormous inventories of wasted PT-char, generate income, and enhance WT-pyrolysis sustainability while still being environmentally friendly. This study was aimed at modifying the surface properties of unusable PT-char to be amalgamated in a rubber compound. PT-char was obtained from a WT-pyrolysis plant, sieved, demineralized using diluted HCl and or Citric acid followed by diluted NaOH. The purified samples were then heated with different ratios of 92- octane at 220-250 °C until the self-ignition of octane occurred. The heat produced by the self-ignition triggered the activation of the surface of PT char as well as it initiated localized explosions which resulted in breaking up the large PT-char particles.