Tires

Researchers have found that tire wear and tear is a major contributor to urban waterway pollution, producing particulate matter that includes microplastics. But they also found effective ways of reducing this type of potentially harmful pollution.

Because they're made of vulcanized rubber, old tires can't simply be melted down and used to make new tires. Such is reportedly not the case, however, with new rubber-free tires made from eco-friendly elastomers.

A new study shows that lettuce readily takes up particles produced from rubber car tires as they roll along our roadways. The research is part of a growing body of evidence that materials we use everyday are flowing back into our food supply.

Changing up the recipe could help roads last longer. Researchers in Australia have now shown another advantage of adding rubber from old tires to asphalt – extra Sun protection that could help roads last up to twice as long before cracking.

While we may think of car exhaust as being a major source of air pollution, automobile tires also hugely contribute to microplastics pollution. A new vehicle-mounted device could help, by gathering the rubber particles that those tires shed.

Scientists have come up with a new way to break apart key components from old care tire material for re-use. While currently expensive, with further work it could provide the basis for new and improved tire recycling methods.

​Although concrete doesn't burn, it can "spall" when subjected to extreme heat – this means that surface layers of the material break off, potentially causing structures made of it to collapse. According to a new study, however, fibers obtained from discarded tires can help keep that from happening.

​For some time now, crumbs of rubber from ground-up tires have been used to produce a more resilient form of asphalt. Researchers from the University of British Columbia are taking things in a different direction, however, by using polymer fibers obtained from old tires to make concrete stronger.

​An automobile tire is composed of about 30 percent carbon black, which adds durability to the rubber. Carbon black is petroleum-based, however, meaning that it isn't entirely eco-friendly. That's why scientists have been experimenting with an alternative – namely egg shells and tomato skins.

Scientists are claiming a chemical breakthrough that replaces the key molecule in conventional tires with one sourced from grass and trees instead, all without affecting the tire's color, shape or performance.

​​When we hear about tires being recycled, it's usually their latex content and/or their steel fibers that are being harvested. They also contain fabric, which hasn't been nearly as useful. That may now be changing, however, as scientists have created a building material using tire fabric.

Researchers with the Grand Challenges Canada initiative have created a highly-effective mosquito trap, each one of which is made from a single discarded tire.​