Sustainable Development Goals
PROJECT INFORMATION AT A GLANCE:
Project Status:
Completed feasibility study
Organizations Involved:
Klean Industries, BMT Group Construction, Several Tyre Recycling Companies
Services / Equipment:
Design & Engineering, Component Supply, Feasibility Study, Due Diligence, Supply Chain Management
An asphalt producer can use recovered tyre products in both its energy supply and its road materials. Klean Industries’ collaboration with BMT Construction Group in Vietnam explored that commercial connection: tyre pyrolysis oil for plant heat and binder modification, alongside crumb rubber for rubberized asphalt.
The completed feasibility work brought our tyre-processing and oil-application expertise together with BMT’s asphalt production and laboratory capabilities. Its significance lies in connecting recovered products to an industrial user with several complementary uses for them. The quality of the oil, the binder formulation and the asphalt production process all influence whether that opportunity can become a dependable business.
The Challenge
Make recovered tyre products useful to an asphalt producer
Hot-mix asphalt production needs heat, a suitable binder and a mix that can withstand traffic and local weather. The Vietnam collaboration examined how end-of-life tyres could contribute to each of those requirements while reducing dependence on conventional fuels and creating useful outlets for recovered materials.
Each application presented a different technical problem. Burner fuel had to support controlled combustion. Oil added to bitumen had to remain compatible with the formulation. Crumb rubber had to contribute useful elasticity without making the binder difficult to mix, store or place.
The commercial challenge was to connect those requirements with tyre collection, processing and product supply. An asphalt plant can provide a local market for recovered oil and rubber, but the value of those materials depends on their consistency and their contribution to the finished product.
The Solution
Connect tyre processing with the asphalt plant
We shared knowledge of its tyre and plastic pyrolysis technologies, with this collaboration focused on the tyre-derived products relevant to BMT’s operations. The work connected upstream material recovery with the practical demands of asphalt production, including oil conditioning, binder formulation and supply-chain integration.
The concept draws on complementary tyre-processing routes. Mechanical processing supplies crumb rubber for the binder; pyrolysis supplies oil for fuel and formulation applications, alongside carbon and recoverable steel. These complementary routes allow a tyre-recovery network to serve several industrial uses.
Use conditioned TPO for asphalt production heat
The fuel application centred on supplying refined and conditioned tyre pyrolysis oil to hot-mix asphalt burners as a substitute for conventional fuel. Its energy content makes TPO relevant to this duty, while treatment and burner compatibility determine how it performs in the plant.
Our project account reports a carbon-footprint reduction of up to 30% on a fuel basis for this application. That figure relates to the fuel substitution boundary. The footprint of an entire road also includes the binder, aggregates, transport and construction.
Sulfur management is part of the treatment requirement. Fuel performance and emissions depend on the oil supplied and the combustion system, so the commercial opportunity is to deliver a fuel that fits the asphalt producer’s operating requirements.
Develop TPO as a binder ingredient
The collaboration also examined the oil’s value within bitumen formulations. Our project account describes controlled TPO additions, typically 5–10% in the binder formulation, to improve flow characteristics and support adhesion. This gives the recovered oil a second application within the same industrial sector.
Our contribution included the development of emulsifying agents described in the project account as supporting formulation stability. That work connected knowledge of the recovered oil with the behaviour required from a usable binder. The formulation, mixing conditions and target road specification determine the appropriate oil addition.
Combine the oil application with crumb rubber modification
Crumb rubber contributes a different function: modifying the binder’s elastic response. The approach sought improved fatigue and crack resistance, resistance to rutting and suitable performance under Vietnam’s traffic and temperature conditions. Reduced traffic noise and longer maintenance intervals were additional performance objectives.
BMT contributed the industrial setting for this work through its asphalt production network and in-house laboratory capability. Our project account describes BMT using in-line blending and temperature control to combine crumb rubber with TPO-enhanced binders, and reports mixes meeting or exceeding conventional road specifications.
Mineral aggregate remains the main constituent of the asphalt pavement. The tyre-derived materials contribute to its energy supply and binder system, with future pavement recycling included in the circular-resource objective.
The Outcome
A completed study connecting oil recovery with a defined industrial market
The collaboration completed a feasibility study connecting tyre recovery with BMT’s asphalt business. It established a project approach in which TPO could serve two distinct functions, while crumb rubber supplied a complementary material input for road construction.
Our contribution extended from pyrolysis knowledge to the application of its products. Oil conditioning, formulation development and the connection to an established asphalt producer gave the work a commercial purpose: creating useful demand for recovered materials within an existing industrial process.
The reported fuel-basis carbon figure and binder addition range provide concrete reference points for that approach. For another project, the investment case turns on local feedstock, delivered product costs, plant compatibility and the pavement specification. Our experience helps connect those decisions before equipment and supply arrangements are fixed.
Vietnam also demonstrates the diversity of circular-oil markets. Alongside refinery co-processing, asphalt production offers an industrial application in which recovered oil can supply process heat or contribute to a material formulation. Selecting and developing the appropriate use is part of the value we bring to oil-recovery projects.
1. One industrial sector offers several recovered-product applications. Asphalt production can use conditioned TPO for heat, suitable TPO in binder formulations and crumb rubber for material performance.
2. Application development strengthens the commercial case. We connected pyrolysis expertise with oil conditioning and formulation work, while BMT supplied asphalt-production and laboratory capability.
3. Our account provides quantified application references. The reported reduction of up to 30% in carbon footprint on a fuel basis and the 5–10% TPO binder formulation range give the next project specific findings to evaluate against its plant, materials and specification.
These are selected achievements and lessons. Further technical and commercial insights are available through an engagement with Klean.
WHAT DO THESE LESSONS MEAN FOR YOUR PROJECT?
Develop the customer application alongside the recovery process. If you are an asphalt producer seeking alternative inputs, or a tyre recycler seeking markets for oil and rubber, we can help connect product requirements with processing, upgrading and supply arrangements.
For a new equipment development, a paid Detailed Equipment Quotation (DEQ) establishes the preliminary technical and commercial basis, followed by a Detailed Feasibility Study (DFS) and Front-End Engineering Design (FEED). Application development and modifications to existing asphalt operations are scoped around the relevant materials, plant and testing requirements. Confidential formulations and supporting project records are addressed through an agreed engagement and appropriate confidentiality arrangements.
Discuss Your Tyre Oil and Asphalt Project with Klean >> GO.
Https://vimeo.com/1092255033
ABOUT THE INFORMATION PRESENTED
This case describes our feasibility collaboration with BMT in 2012 and the technical approach recorded in the project account. The figures relate to the stated applications and depend on the relevant materials and assessment basis. Detailed formulations, test records and commercial information are subject to confidentiality and available within an appropriately scoped engagement.
This project addresses the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by considering the goals and associated targets illustrated by the WBCSD’s Tire Industry Project (TIP). TIP provides a framework for action that outlines impactful pathways for the tire sector to contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To learn more about how our approach, solutions, and technologies contribute to advancing the SDGs, please review the report “Sustainability Driven: Accelerating Impact with the Tire Sector SDG Roadmap”.
