Pirelli ‘Tyre to Tyre’: how to turn end-of-life tyres into recycled products

Turning end-of-life and waste tyres into recycled materials for new products. This is the main objective of the European ‘Tyre to Tyre’ project, initiated by Pirelli, Pyrum, Synthos and BASF – a genuine industrial ecosystem designed to increase the use of recycled materials derived from end-of-life and waste tyres.

The process begins with the collection of end-of-life tyres in Germany from selected outlets within the Driver network and from motorsport operations, as well as production waste collected at the Pirelli plant in Breuberg. These materials are processed through an industrial supply chain designed to maximise their intrinsic value, transforming them into secondary raw materials – including synthetic rubber – certified under the ISCC Plus scheme. This certification guarantees traceability throughout the entire value chain and enables these circular materials to be reintroduced into the production of new Pirelli tyres, ensuring they meet the highest standards of quality and performance. As part of this process, Pyrum converts end-of-life and waste tyres through a pyrolysis process – the thermal decomposition of materials at high temperatures in the absence of oxygen – yielding two secondary raw materials: recovered carbon black (RCB) and pyrolysis oil (TPO).

The recovered carbon black is further processed to meet quality standards and reintroduced directly into Pirelli’s European production, partially replacing virgin carbon black. At the same time, the pyrolysis oil is supplied to BASF, where it is used alongside fossil-based raw materials in the production of chemicals such as butadiene and styrene. Through a mass balance approach, the recycled content is attributed to ISCC Plus-certified Ccycled products. These circular materials are then used by Synthos to produce ISCC Plus-certified synthetic rubber for high-performance passenger car tyre applications.