Salud and Holcim Together To Recycle Old Tires To Combat Dengue

Used tires can be mosquito breeding sites, especially for the Aedes Aegypti and the source of Dengue. The Ministerio de Salud (Ministry of Health) reports some 3.000 cases of Dengue so far this year and showing a rebound in the past weeks.



As such Salud and the Holcim cement company have announced a join campaign to collect and properly dispose of old tires. The two have been in partnership in the fight against Dengue since 2009.

A major use for scrap tires is fuel. Tire-derived-fuel (tdf) is a fuel derived from scrap tires of all kinds. This may include whole tire or tires processed into uniform, flowable pieces that satisfy the specifications of the end-user. Scrap tires are used as fuel either shredded or whole depending on the type of combustion unit.

The Holcim company uses tdf's to fuel its cement kilns, that can accept tires whole. Most combustion systems require the tires to be processed to certain sizes and purity to ensure the material consistently meets the needs of the particular fuel user. Tdf is a very high quality fuel having about 13,000 to 15,000 BTU per pound, (7200 to 8300 kcal/kg), about the same as a superior quality coal.

There's a common perception the tires we put on our vehicles are made of rubber, a renewable resource. Unfortunately, well over 90% of all tires are made from synthetics - and they have certainly proved to be an environmental headache.

Once tires have reached the end of their serviceable lives, they tend to be dumped in huge piles. If these piles should be set alight, the smoke is an extraordinarily toxic cocktail and the runoff from melted residue can contaminate groundwater.

Thus, burning the tires in the cement kilns will reduce greenhouse gases.