Systems and methods for recycling rubber waste into surface-modified devulcanized rubber or an end-of-life tire (elt) compound

Abstract

A system and a method for producing a surface devulcanized crumb rubber from vulcanized crumb rubber. The method comprising applying a dose of microwave energy to micronized vulcanized crumb rubber sufficient to sever sulfidic cross-links in the surface of the micronized vulcanized rubber crumb to produce a devulcanized crumb rubber. In aspects, the method relates to a method for producing an end-of-life tire compound from vulcanized crumb rubber comprising obtaining a surface devulcanized crumb rubber; mixing the surface devulcanized crumb rubber with a plastic polymer and/or an oil to form a devulcanized rubber mixture; and extruding the mixture through an extruder to produce the end-of-life tire compound.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.