Car Tires' Life-Cycle
By: Justin Thumasathit and Ebraheem El-Eishy
Step 1: Raise And Extract
The natural rubber and created from rubber trees in places like; Brazil, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
The rubber in car tires are extracted from rubber trees that are found in tropical, rainy areas.
Step 2: Process
The rubber is transported to a manufacturing plant and the rubber is then mixed with sulfur, bisphenol, or peroxide. It is then molded and heated to take its finally shape.
Step 3: Manufacture
The tires are sent to many places in order to be created. These places start the different raw material points and sent to the tire building machine. The tires are then tested at the end to make sure it is up to standard. Tires have layers that are put on to make it more durable.
Step 4: Use
The tires are shipped worldwide to different tire retailers. The tires are put onto cars, tractors, planes, etc.
Step 5: Disposal and Recycling
The tires often are disposed in landfills. Some tires are shredded for various uses, like used in other products that have rubber in them. It can also be used to make pots or equipment.
Fun Facts
- For the first 25 years of the car, all tires were white. Zinc oxide was added to the rubber for strength, but had a side effect of making bright white tires.
- By the second decade of the 20st Century, researchers were looking for more ways to increase durability. Carbon black, a waste product of the petroleum industry, added longevity to the tire, but changed the color to black.
Modern Pneumatic Car Tire Life Cycle. (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2016, from http://www.designlife-cycle.com/new-page-3/
. (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2016, from http://wwwcourses.sens.buffalo.edu/ce435/2001ZGu/Firestone_Tires/FirestoneTiresReport.html
TIRES. (2015, March). Retrieved April 11, 2016, from https://www3.epa.gov/warm/pdfs/Tires.pdf