Proceedings of the Institution of

Civil Engineers
Engineering Sustainability 157
September 2004 Issue ES3
Pages 131^138

Paper 13733
Received 04/03/2004
Accepted 20/07/2004

Keywords:
Kypros Pilakoutas Kyriacos Neocleous Houssam Tlemat
concrete technology/recycling of
Professor of Construction Innovation, Marie-Curie Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, Research Scholar, Centre for Cement and
materials/waste management &
Centre for Cement and Concrete, Centre for Cement and Concrete, Concrete, Department of Civil and
disposal
Department of Civil and Structural Department of Civil and Structural Structural Engineering, The University of
Engineering, The University of Sheffield, UK Engineering, The University of Sheffield, UK Sheffield, UK

Reuse of tyre steel fibres as concrete reinforcement

K. Pilakoutas PhD, DSc, K. Neocleous PhD and H. Tlemat Dipl-Ing, Beratende Inge¤nieur
To attain economically viable and environmentally can eliminate the use of conventional reinforcement and can
friendly tyre recycling, it is necessary to develop new increase the speed of construction.
applications and products, which will use tyre by-products
(especially the steel cord) as raw materials. The authors This paper presents the work performed on concrete elements
demonstrate that the steel fibres recovered from used reinforced with RSF (RSFRC). The work forms part of an EU
tyres can be used to reinforce concrete elements. This Marie-Curie research fellowship,9 a PhD thesis10 funded by the
application has a great potential, as it is estimated that University of Sheffield, and the completed project11 ‘Demon-
more than 500 000 t of high-quality steel fibres could be strating steel fibres from waste tyres as reinforcement in
recovered annually from used tyres in the EU alone. This concrete’, which was funded under the Partners in Innovation
paper presents the work carried out as part of various scheme by the UK Department of Trade and Industry.
ongoing projects on the use of steel fibres in concrete
construction. The first part of the paper deals with waste The first part of the paper (sections 2–4) provides a general
management issues, the methods used to recover steel introduction on the waste management of used tyres in both
fibres from tyres, and existing applications of used tyres. the UK and EU. The most recent statistics for the arisings and
The second part presents the mechanical behaviour of waste management of used tyres are presented and the factors
concrete elements reinforced with these steel fibres and influencing these statistics are discussed. Then, the methods
discusses the relevant design and economic issues. It is currently used to recover RSF from used tyres are presented. To
concluded that the use of these steel fibres in concrete highlight the need for developing new markets for RSF, the last
construction will benefit not only the construction indus- section of this part presents existing engineering and industrial
try, but also the producers and recyclers of used tyres. applications of whole tyres and their by-products. The second
part (section 5) describes the research carried out on the
1. INTRODUCTION engineering and economic aspects related to the use of RSF in
The waste management of used tyres is of major concern for concrete.
many environmental bodies and agencies worldwide. This is
especially true in the European Union (EU), where environ- 2. WASTE MANAGEMENT OF USED TYRES
mental legislation is the driving force behind the waste It is estimated12 that, worldwide, more than one billion used
management of used tyres. Following the implementation of tyres arise annually. Nearly a quarter of this amount arises in
various EU directives,1,2 reuse of tyres and material recovery the EU alone, and approximately 50 million tyres reach the end
have become the most environmentally viable ways for of their lives in the UK per year.
disposing of used tyres.
There are many ways that used tyres can be managed, such as
Material recovery from used tyres is undertaken by utilising energy recovery, material recovery, retreading, exports, and
either mechanical or thermal degradation processes. The former disposal to landfill. Fig. 1 shows that, during 2002, the majority
reduces tyres to steel fibres and granulated rubber whereas the of used tyres in the EU were recovered and only one-third of
latter process breaks down the tyres into steel, char, liquids and them were sent to landfill. Similar values were published13 in
gases. To comply with the various EU directives, EU member the UK for 2001 (Fig. 2).
states need to develop markets and applications which will
utilise used tyres as a secondary raw material. This is especially The waste management of used tyres is greatly influenced by
challenging for the recovered steel fibres (RSF), which are environmental legislation. Typical examples are the EU Land-
currently used either as scrap feed in steel manufacturing or fill1 and Waste Incineration2 Directives. The former has already
disposed of to landfills. prohibited the disposal of whole tyres to landfill (from July
2003), and it will prohibit the disposal of tyre by-products to
RSF could be utilised as concrete reinforcement and recent landfill by 2006. The European Tyre Recycling Association
research3–8 shows that the application of RSF in concrete leads reported12 that some of the EU member states (such as Sweden
to an increase in concrete strength, ductility and toughness. The and Finland)13 had ceased the disposal of tyres to landfills by
use of RSF in concrete (as with any other type of steel fibres) 2002. The implementation of the latter directive in the UK

Engineering Sustainability 157 Issue ES3 Reuse of tyre steel fibres Pilakoutas et al. 131
 managed according to regulatory controls, until they are
physically reused.13,15 This naturally increases the cost of tyre
recycling and prohibits the entry of new players into the
industry. It is noted that the European Council has recently
requested the European Commission to consider the revision of
the Waste Framework Directive to clarify the legal distinction
between waste and non-waste.16 This may in due course have a
favourable effect for the waste management of tyres.

The waste management of used tyres is also affected by

economics factors and the public perception about recycled or
reused products. A typical example is retread tyres, whose
demand has constantly declined over the years following the
reduction in the price of new tyres and the negative public
perception about the quality of retread tyres.17

3. RECOVERY OF STEEL FIBRES FROM TYRES

Fig. 1. EU statistics12 for waste management of used tyres Tyre shredding and the cryogenic process can be used to
during 2002 mechanically recover RSF from used tyres. In addition, steel
fibres can be recovered by utilising anaerobic thermal degra-
dation, such as conventional pyrolysis and microwave-
induced18 pyrolysis of tyres. The amount of extracted steel
fibres depends mainly on the type of tyre: tyres of light vehicles
contain up to 15% steel whereas truck tyres contain up to 25%
steel.15

3.1. Shredding process

The shredding process reduces tyres into rubber granules and
steel fibres through a number of cutting and granulating stages.
In the first stage of processing, a complete tyre is chopped or
shredded until it is reduced to pieces ranging in size from about
50 to 150 mm. The rubber pieces, which still contain steel, are
then fed into a second shredder that reduces them to smaller
pieces (Fig. 3(a)). At the end of this stage, magnets are used to
separate the steel from the rubber (Fig. 3(b)). The rubber is then
fed into a knife or hammer mill, where it is granulated to
approximately 1–10 mm in size. The number of grinding cycles
Fig. 2. UK statistics13 for waste management of used tyres depends on the desired size of the rubber granules. During the
during 2001 granulating process, magnets are used to remove any remaining
steel.

The steel extracted after the second stage of shredding and the
resulted in the application of environmental controls on the use final stage of grinding differs in quality. The former contains
of tyres for energy recovery. The main outcome of these large pieces of rubber as well as much of the textile wire in
controls was the short-term reduction in the use of tyres for long lengths. The cord is sometimes undamaged, but much of it
energy recovery.13 The
implementation of the EU
End-of-life Vehicle14 Direc-
tive is expected to increase
further the amount of used
tyres that would have to be
reused or recycled, as this
directive aims at ambitiously
high rates of vehicle recovery
and recycling.

The definition of waste is

another obstacle that affects
the recycling and reuse of
used tyres in the UK. A used
tyre and its constituents are Fig. 3. Rubber (a) and steel (b) extracted from the second stage of the shredding process
waste materials and must be

132 Engineering Sustainability 157 Issue ES3 Reuse of tyre steel fibres Pilakoutas et al.
has deteriorated into individual wires. The latter is much finer,
comprising mostly thin individual steel wires, but still contain-
ing around 10% rubber and fluff.

Mechanical shredding is considered as a commercially mature

and technologically reliable process. However, it can be quite
costly, as the cutting blades require constant maintenance. The
rate of deterioration of the blades is high because the tyre
contains high-strength steel and the steel in the bead is
normally of a large diameter. It is noted that tyre shredding has
increased over the years, as it is more economical to transport
shredded tyres rather than whole tyres.13

3.2. Cryogenic process

The cryogenic process19,20 involves the cooling of tyres, and
their subsequent brittle fracturing and reduction to rubber,
steel, and textile. In a typical cryogenic process, the used tyres Fig. 4. Recycled steel derived from the microwave-induced
are initially shredded at ambient temperature, and then pyrolysis of tyres (courtesy of AMAT Ltd18)
transferred to a deep-freezing tunnel system. Inside the first
tunnel section, the fragmented tyres are pre-cooled by a
counter-current of gaseous nitrogen at approximately 71208C.
The tyre pieces are then transferred into the main cooling noted that it can be difficult to market some of the pyrolysis
tunnel, where they are cooled down below their embrittling end-products due to their low quality (especially the char), and
temperature and, as a result, they become nearly brittle. At the consequently, many pyrolysis plants are not economically
next stage, the fragmented tyres are granulated through a series viable.24
of mills, and are reduced to rubber, steel fibres and textile. The
steel and textile are separated whereas the rubber granules are 3.4. Microwave-induced pyrolysis process
dried, passed through a steel extraction unit and finally sieved. The microwave-induced pyrolysis process,18 known as
advanced molecular agitation technology, optimises microwave
The extracted steel is fairly clean, but it may loose its ductility power at the molecular level to thermally decompose tyres to
if it is cooled down below its embrittling temperature.21 The their constituents. According to the developers of this process,18
cryogenic process is considered to be energy-efficient because the microwaves excite the molecular bonds of the long-chain
it requires less energy to separate the rubber from the steel rubber hydrocarbons sufficiently to break them into shorter
rather than ambient-temperature processes.19 However, the hydrocarbons, which are released as volatile gases at a
high cost of liquid nitrogen is the main drawback of this temperature around 3508C. The process operates at relatively
process. low temperatures and hence, the derived steel cord and textile
wire remain intact, while the rubber is converted to oil, gases
3.3. Pyrolysis process and char. Similarly to the conventional pyrolysis process, the
Pyrolysis22,23 of tyres is the process where tyres are thermally gases can be used for the energy requirements of the process.
decomposed, in the absence of oxygen, to their organic and The derived steel cord, shown in Fig. 4, can be cut to any
inorganic components. The process generates gases (hydrogen, length.
methane and other hydrocarbons), oil, and solid residuals of
steel and char, which is a low-grade carbon black. The balance 4. GENERAL ENGINEERING AND INDUSTRIAL
between the end-products of the process can be altered by APPLICATIONS
changing the imposed conditions, such as the heating Used tyres are being utilised in a variety of engineering and
temperature and duration. In a typical pyrolysis plant, used industrial applications and numerous examples are published in
tyres are fed into a pyrolysis reactor, where they are heated to the literature. These applications can be divided into two main
the desired temperature. The gases and the liquids are separated categories: those that use either whole or fragmented tyres; and
from the extracted vapours through a system of gas–liquid those that use the tyre constituents, such as rubber, char and
separators. At the end of the process, the steel is separated from steel.
the char and the char is ground.
4.1. Whole and fragmented tyres
The steel comes out of the process still containing some char on Whole tyres are used for the construction of retaining walls
its surface. In most pyrolysis plants, the tyres are shredded (such as in ‘green’ housing),25 floating breakwaters,12 boat
before being fed to the reactor and, hence, the RSF are already fenders,12 artificial reefs26,27 (Fig. 5), temporary roadways,12
damaged to a certain degree, as in the case of the shredding slope stabilisation and erosion control.12 They are also utilised
process. in landfill engineering12,15 for a number of applications, such
as drainage systems to collect leachate and gas. Strips of tyres,
Since the pyrolysis process is contained, the release of extracted by cutting the sideways of whole tyres, can also be
combustion gases is minimised.22 Pyrolysis is energy-efficient used to produce elements encapsulated with resin (such as roof
because the derived gases and oil have high calorific value and tiles, floors, crash barriers, insulation and acoustic panels, and
can be used for the energy requirements of the process. It is railway sleepers).28

Engineering Sustainability 157 Issue ES3 Reuse of tyre steel fibres Pilakoutas et al. 133
 plastics), as long as it is upgraded to high-grade carbon black.22

While there is demand and established markets for the

granulated rubber and carbon black, there are very few
applications that utilise the RSF. Currently, the majority of RSF
in the UK is either disposed of to landfills or used as scrap feed
in steel manufacturing. One possible area of application is
concrete construction, where industrially manufactured steel
fibres are successfully replacing conventional reinforcement bar
(rebar) in a range of applications (such as sprayed concrete,
slabs-on-grade, and precast elements).

5. CONCRETE REINFORCED WITH RSF

To facilitate the introduction of RSF in concrete construction,
the authors undertook research into the following engineering
aspects

(a) characterisation of various types of RSF

(b) development of appropriate concrete mixes and examina-
tion of mechanical properties of concrete elements rein-
forced with RSF (RSFRC)
(c) development of demonstration products
(d ) development of appropriate design guidelines.

These aspects will be examined in detail in the following

subsections together with economic and safety aspects.
Fig. 5. Artificial reef made from used tyres (courtesy of
Glenelg Scuba 27)
5.1. Engineering aspects
Two types of RSF were considered: shredded fibres (SRSF) and
fibres obtained from the microwave-induced pyrolysis process
Fragmented tyres (such as those obtained from the first stage of (PRSF). The thickness of SRSF was around 0·23 mm whereas
the shredding process) are used to stabilise slopes, to fill surface the thickness of PRSF ranged from 0·8 to 1·5 mm. Steel fibres
and septic drainage systems, and for embankments.12,15 They obtained from virgin tyre cord (VSF) and two types of
are also used as fuel for power generation.13 industrially produced steel fibres (denoted ISF-1 and ISF-2)
were also examined (see Fig. 6).
4.2. Tyre constituents
Granulated rubber, extracted from the mechanical recycling of Material characterisation of RSF was one of the main tasks of
tyres, is utilised in the manufacturing of asphalt.29 The use of the above research. Single and double pull-out tests were
rubber offers advantages such as improved durability of asphalt performed to evaluate the optimal fibre length required by each
and reduction of the noise generated by traffic. The use of type of RSF in order to develop sufficient bond with concrete.
recycled rubber crumb as aggregate in concrete was also Experimental results5 showed that the type of bond failure
proposed,30 however, this type of application is not currently depended on the anchorage length of the fibres. It was also
viable because the cost of recycled rubber is much higher than determined10 that the strength of SRSF and PRSF was best
that of natural aggregates. utilised when the fibre length was about 20 and 50 mm
respectively. These lengths are similar to the lengths of
Granulated rubber is also utilised in many industrial products. equivalent industrial fibres.
It is used in the production of
new tyres,12 synthetic sport
and playground surfaces;31
and expansion joints12 for
bridges and roads. Other
products12 include roof and
floor tiles, porous drainpipes,
office furniture and camping
equipment.

Carbon black, extracted from

the pyrolysis process, can be
used in the manufacturing of
tyres and industrial rubber
products, as well as pigments Fig. 6. Types of examined steel fibres
(for printing inks, paints and

134 Engineering Sustainability 157 Issue ES3 Reuse of tyre steel fibres Pilakoutas et al.
 illustrate the commercial
potential of RSF. The first
product was a precast RSFRC
slab (Fig. 8) used for drainage
cover. The design of the slab
was based on that of a rein-
forced concrete slab of an
existing drainage system.32
This product was chosen
because the design of the
reinforced concrete slab was
fairly complex owing to the
configuration of the drainage
holes. The use of steel fibre
reinforced concrete (SFRC) in
such geometrically complex
elements simplifies their
design and offers savings in
the assembly and placing of
Fig. 7. Flexural behaviour of steel fibre reinforced concrete prisms the reinforcement. The
mechanical behaviour of
three slabs reinforced in dif-
ferent ways (RSFRC contain-
One of the main problems encountered when mixing RSF in ing SRSF, RSFRC containing PRSF, and slurry-infiltrated
fresh concrete is the tendency of the fibres to ball together, concrete reinforced with SRSF) was examined. Central-load
which spoils the concrete. RSF have irregular geometrical bending tests were performed to determine whether the slab
properties, and if they originate from the shredding process, would satisfy the loading conditions adopted for pavements by
they often contain rubber particles on their surface (Fig. 6). BS EN 124.33 The first two types of slabs passed the B125
loading condition (125 kN point load), whereas the slurry-
One of the main objectives of the research was the development infiltrated slab satisfied the C250 condition (250 kN point load).
of appropriate concrete mixes and the optimisation of fibre This demonstrated the commercial potential of suitably
length distribution so as to maximise the amount of fibres in a designed RSFRC slabs in drainage applications such as car
given mix. This involved the examination of the properties of parks, carriageways, and hard shoulders for all types of
concrete at fresh and hardened states. The slump test and the vehicles.
concrete compressive and flexural strengths were evaluated by
using standard tests.6,8 The results showed that the addition of SFRC has high energy-absorption capacity, which makes it
moderate amounts of RSF improved both the concrete’s ideal for high-impact and explosive loading and, hence, a high-
compressive and flexural strength. However, as the amount of impact resistant slab was the second product developed (Fig. 9).
fibres increases further, the compressive strength decreases due The slab was cast with slurry-infiltrated concrete that contained
to an increase in air entrapped in concrete. The research a high volume of SRSF. The slab was successfully tested to
findings suggested that the maximum RSF content (by weight), impact loading, and preliminary analysis indicated that it could
which could be effectively used in concrete, was 6% and 2% for be successfully applied as wall panelling in security-sensitive
the PRSF and SRSF respectively. Standard bending tests on buildings or as a crash barrier in carriageways.
prisms reinforced with PRSF, VSF or ISFs showed that a similar
behaviour is exhibited by all fibres, despite their big differences Another important task undertaken was the development of a
(see Fig. 7).10 general framework for design as well as simple guidelines for
the effective use of RSF in concrete.9 The framework of an
Two RSFRC demonstration products were also developed to existing design guideline, developed by RILEM34 for conven-

Fig. 8. Precast cover slab for drainage channels

Engineering Sustainability 157 Issue ES3 Reuse of tyre steel fibres Pilakoutas et al. 135
 tional rebar. It is anticipated that demand for steel fibre
reinforcement would increase, if prices decrease, new concrete
applications are introduced, and practising engineers are more
informed about the benefits of this type of construction.

The extensive use of RSF in construction will benefit both

producers and recyclers of used tyres. It is expected that this
application would encourage the material recovery of large
amounts of used tyres and, hence, the costs associated with
material recovery would be reduced due to improved economies
of scale.15 In addition, this application would provide a more
viable and sustainable waste management solution rather than
the use of RSF as scrap feed in steel manufacturing.

Fig. 9. Prototype of high-impact resistant slab The reduced cost of reinforcement in concrete will benefit the
manufacturers and customers of such products. In addition,
environmental benefits will come from the reduction of tyre
tional SFRC, was considered. Following an examination of the by-products to landfill and reduction in the need for virgin
relevant literature,35,36 it was confirmed7 that this guideline steel fibres. A good market for used tyres will also reduce the
overestimates the bending resistance of SFRC due to a number problem of fly-tipping of tyres.
of issues not related to the fibre type (such as the test adopted
for the evaluation of flexural strength and the derivation of By-products of used tyres, such as RSF, are not considered15
concrete’s tensile stress block). It was suggested that the RILEM hazardous to human health and, in addition, steel fibres are
guideline could be used for the design of RSFRC, and new tests considered to be safer to handle than rebar because they are
have been proposed to improve the accuracy of predicting the part of the concrete mix, which is pumped into place. However,
bending resistance of SFRC. health and safety risks may exist when physically handling
concrete elements with RSF exposed on the surface. Hence,
guidelines related to these issues need to be developed.
5.2. Economic and other aspects
The current demand for rebars in concrete in the UK37 is about
The geometrical irregularity of RSF can be a potential market
1 million tonnes per year and 12 million tonnes per year in the
barrier and, hence, guidelines may be required for specification
EU.37 The cost for rebar is currently increasing due to the high
and testing prior to commercial use. Currently, the main
worldwide demand for steel (notably China) and it now stands
obstacle to developing RSF as concrete reinforcement is the
at over £350 per tonne. Steel fibres are a niche within the
lack of a simple and cost-effective process for sorting and
reinforcement market and, in the UK, this niche is estimated38
packaging the RSF. In addition, the legal uncertainty regarding
at 10 000 t per annum. As steel fibres are replacing rebars in a
the definition of waste may create problems to manufacturers
range of new applications (including suspended slabs), this
wishing to process RSF.
amount is projected38 to increase to 20 000 t by 2005 (150 000 t
per year in the EU). The UK price of industrially produced steel
6. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS
fibres (ISF) ranges from £450 to £10 000 per tonne. The value39
The waste management of used tyres is influenced by environ-
of RSF (as scrap material) ranges from £30 to £80 per tonne.
mental legislation and various techno-economic factors. Hence,
However, not all RSF are suitable as scrap feed and much ends
to develop economically viable and environmentally friendly
up in landfills.
end-of-life tyre processing businesses, it is necessary to develop
new markets which will use the by-products of used tyres as
Table 1 shows the amount of steel fibres that could be secondary raw materials.
potentially recovered in both the UK and EU. It is evident that
the potential supply of RSF would exceed the current demand Currently, there is a large variety of applications and products
for steel fibres; however, RSF will be offered to the market at a using rubber and carbon black recycled from tyres, but RSF are
range of prices depending on their properties. It is likely that used as scrap feed in steel manufacturing or end up in landfills.
most RSF will be priced below the market value of conven-
The authors demonstrated
that the use of RSF in con-
Description United Kingdom13: metric tonnes European Union12: metric tonnes crete leads to an increase in
concrete strength, ductility
Tyres Steel fibres Tyres Steel fibres and toughness. It is con-
cluded that the behaviour of
Total arising 481 500 72 225* 2 660 000 399 000* concrete reinforced with these
Material recovery 107 000 16 050* 558 600 83 790*
fibres can be comparable to
* Based on a steel content of 15% by weight. that of concrete reinforced
with industrially produced
Table 1. Potential annual amount of steel fibres recycled from used tyres steel fibres. The fibres could
therefore be used in a range

136 Engineering Sustainability 157 Issue ES3 Reuse of tyre steel fibres Pilakoutas et al.
of applications, such as foundations, impact barriers, drainage Civil and Structural Engineering, The University of
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138 Engineering Sustainability 157 Issue ES3 Reuse of tyre steel fibres Pilakoutas et al.