SBIR Phase I: Development of a Novel Rubber Recycling Process Not Involving Devulcanization

这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是将废轮胎中的橡胶化合物重新用于高性能产品，包括新轮胎，而不会对产品性能造成重大损失。由于对产品性能的不利影响，目前只有很小一部分轮胎为此目的进行了研磨。然而，如果用我们发明的方法处理磨碎的橡胶，可能会使用更大的数量。这将有几个好处。制造商可以降低材料成本，橡胶回收行业将获得显著增长，难看的轮胎倾倒和相关的污染问题将消失。此外，轮胎行业将变得更加可持续，目前使用旧轮胎的其他不可接受的用途，如在低成本运营中用作燃料，将面临财务挑战，因为新出现的、更有利可图的、保持聚合物基质完整性的用途。这个SBIR第一阶段项目建议建立在我们公司过去几年进行的研究的基础上。虽然众所周知，回收磨碎橡胶会显著降低物理性能，但对其根本原因的信息和理解有限。许多公司和学术机构对磨碎橡胶的潜在价值寄予厚望，但此前并没有出现重大的商业流程。这项工作旨在开发一种不需要脱硫化步骤的回收工艺。这一点首先通过模型样本几何模型进行了演示，这些几何模型模拟了研磨橡胶颗粒在添加到新鲜橡胶化合物中并与其共硫化时所经历的环境。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project is the reuse of rubber compounds from spent tires in high performance products including new tires without significant loss in product performance. Only a very small portion of those tires are currently being ground up for this purpose because of the detrimental impact on product properties. However, larger quantities could potentially be used if the ground rubber is treated by the process of our invention. This would have several benefits. Manufacturers could reduce material cost, the rubber recycling industry would enjoy significant growth and unsightly tire dumps with associated pollution problems would disappear. Additionally, the tire industry will become more sustainable and other unacceptable uses of old tires currently practiced, such as their use as fuels in low cost operations, would be financially challenged as novel, more profitable uses that retain the integrity of the polymer matrix emerge.This SBIR Phase I project proposes to build upon studies conducted by our company during the last few years. While it was widely known that recycled ground rubber will significantly reduce physical properties, limited information and understanding existed on the basic causes. Much hope was pinned by many companies and academic institutions on the potential merit of the ground up rubber but no significant commercial process previously emerged. This work aims to develop a recycling process which does not require a devulcanization step. This was first demonstrated with model sample geometries that simulate the environment which ground rubber particles experience when added to and being co-vulcanized with fresh rubber compounds.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.