Steel Recovery from Tire Pyrolysis

Every steel-belted radial tire contains reinforcing steel wire, and pyrolysis leaves that steel behind in the reactor as a recoverable byproduct. Capturing and selling it turns what might otherwise be treated as waste into a genuine revenue stream.

Where the Steel Comes From

Tires are reinforced with steel wire in the belts and bead. When the rubber decomposes during pyrolysis, the steel does not vaporize — it remains as a solid residue mixed with the carbon char. Separating the two is a standard step in the post-processing line.

How Separation Works

After the reactor cools, the char and steel are separated, typically through magnetic separation, which draws the steel away from the recovered carbon black. The result is a clean steel fraction that can enter the scrap metal supply chain. The effectiveness of this step determines both the value of the steel and the purity of the recovered carbon black.

Value and Market

Recovered steel is a commodity with an established market. Scrap steel is widely traded and purchased by steel mills and foundries, meaning the byproduct has a ready outlet. While steel is a smaller revenue stream than oil or carbon black, its contribution is effectively incremental, since it is recovered from material already being processed.

A Cleaner Carbon Black Product

Steel recovery serves a second purpose: removing metal is necessary to produce specification-grade recovered carbon black. Efficient separation therefore improves the value of the primary product even as it creates the secondary steel stream. The two objectives reinforce each other.

Designing for Recovery

Not all plants are equally good at steel recovery. Reactor and separation design, along with operating discipline, determine how clean the steel is and how much is lost to the char. Buyers evaluating equipment should treat steel recovery as a criterion, not an afterthought.

Treating steel as a designed-for output rather than a residue is a hallmark of a well-engineered pyrolysis operation.

Learn More:

• Explore Klean’s tire pyrolysis projects
• Learn about Klean’s commodity sales partnerships
• See how clean separation improves recovered carbon black

Design Steel Recovery In, Not As an Afterthought

Steel recovery is incremental revenue from material you are already processing, and it is the key to a cleaner carbon black product. Building separation into your design from the start maximizes both streams.

Evaluating equipment and want steel recovery done right?

Contact Klean Industries about steel recovery and byproduct valorization in tire pyrolysis » GO.