Preparation, characterisation, and application of spent tyre-derived activated carbon chars for total organic carbon removal from wastewater

Unofficial AI-generated summary based on the public title and abstract. Not an official translation.

🔬研究者:Provides a method for synthesizing activated carbon from waste tyres with characterization data; useful for researchers in waste valorization and adsorption technology.

🏢実務担当者:Companies in wastewater treatment or tyre recycling can adopt this low-cost adsorbent for organic removal, potentially reducing operational costs.

🏛政策担当者:Highlights a viable circular economy route for waste tyres, supporting policies on resource efficiency and industrial waste reduction.

This study investigates the transformation of pyrolytic spent tyre-derived char and crumb rubber into high-performance activated carbon chars for industrial wastewater remediation. Utilising an in-house macro-thermogravimetric analysis system under an argon atmosphere, spent tyre-derived activated carbon char were synthesised via physical temperature activation and aqua regia demineralisation. Comprehensive characterisation using x-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy, revealed a predominantly amorphous structure with nanoscale crystallites (~1 nm) and active surface functional groups. Proximate analysis confirmed that both crumb rubber and leached tyre crumb rubber with aqua regia derivatives achieved favourable compositions (ash ~ 9.6%; fixed carbon ~ 84%), comparable to commercial activated carbon (AC). At an optimal activation temperature of 850°C, the char of tyre crumb leached with aqua regia variant exhibited a significant surface area of 300 m2/g. Crucially, the tyre crumb char produced at 850°C variant developed a pore volume of 0.8 cm3/g-effectively doubling that of commercial activated carbon (0.4 cm3/g)-facilitating the sequestration of large organic molecules. In application tests using high-strength starch wastewater, char of tyre crumb leached with aqua regia and tyre crumb char, both produced at 850°C, achieved total organic carbon removal efficiencies of 60% and 50%, respectively, bridging the performance gap between waste-derived and commercial adsorbents. These findings validate waste tyres as a viable, low-cost precursor for industrial-grade adsorbents, offering a sustainable circular economy route for tyre valorisation and reduced industrial disposal costs. Future research will focus on kinetic modelling and the recovery of zinc from spent tyre-derived activated carbon char residues.

• openalex https://doi.org/10.17159/2411-9717/3768/2026first seen 2026-06-18 05:18:17