Areas and fields of rubber crumb use

It is no secret that, because of the environmental situation in the world, people are looking for ways to produce goods with minimal impact on the environment. Recycling different products is now very popular. If a recycled product has good quality characteristics and does not cause significant harm to nature, it can be profitable and in demand in different areas of human activity. Rubber crumb is an example of such a recycled product. Below we will look at what it is made from, why it is so popular and where it is used.

What Is Rubber Crumb?

Rubber crumb is produced by recycling worn rubber products. Since more than half of the rubber produced in the world is used for automobile tires, it can be said that the main source of raw material for rubber crumb is car tires.

Tires are made from rubber, fillers, softening oils, carbon black and other components. This composition makes tire rubber a strong and reliable material.

Tire rubber has a number of important qualities: chemical resistance, elasticity, strength, stretchability and abrasion resistance. When this product is processed into rubber crumb, all these qualities are preserved. As a result, the obtained crumb has all the listed properties. This determines all areas and fields of rubber crumb use.

Forms and Sizes of Rubber Crumb

After rubber processing, material of different forms and sizes is obtained. Different areas and fields of rubber crumb use require material of different sizes and shapes. Depending on shape, crumb can be in the form of shavings, cube-shaped particles or irregular particles with uneven edges. Different shapes are obtained by using different crushing methods.

Depending on size, rubber crumb can be up to 1 mm, called rubber flour, 1-2 mm, 2-4 mm, 3-5 mm and larger. Crumb of a particular size or shape is well suited for a specific purpose. Let us look at where this material can be used.

Where Rubber Crumb Is Used

Rubber crumb is a relatively inexpensive material that is well suited for manufacturing various products. Using this crumb ensures reliability and durability of the resulting product.

Rubber crumb is used for:

• road construction. Crumb is used as an additive and significantly saves resources. It is added to asphalt concrete mixture in small quantities;

• production of paving slabs and shoe soles. As mentioned above, crumb has excellent wear resistance, which allows it to be used in these products;

• running track surfaces for stadiums. Such a surface consists almost 90% of this crumb, and crumbs of different sizes are used;

• infill for sports fields, such as tennis or football fields, and as filler for punching bags. Using rubber crumb for surfaces and infill of different stadiums and fields minimizes the possibility of athlete injuries. Crumb is also often used as infill for children’s playgrounds for the same purpose;

• production of slate, drywall and various construction structures. Adding rubber crumb to their composition improves some properties of construction products and gives them strength and resistance to environmental factors.

Considering how profitable and useful rubber crumb can be, it is more rational to recycle tire rubber rather than simply throw it away or burn it.