Advantages of using reclaimed rubber

 Rubber is a natural resource that has been used widely all over the world for a very long time, for a variety of purposes. Rubber is normally available in two forms, natural and synthetic. The natural rubber is obtained from plants and the synthetic rubber is manufactured through the process of polymerization. The extraction of both natural and synthetic rubber is expensive and long processes. Also, the toxic and detrimental chemical properties of rubber are increasingly becoming a point of concern for environmentalists due to the regular dumping of waste rubber in rivers and landfills, thus contaminating the soil and water.

In such a scenario, using reclaimed rubber greatly reduces the load of toxicity being let off into the atmosphere and also is now proving to be a very beneficial, cost-effective method to reduce the wastage of rubber. The main advantages that reclaimed rubber has over natural or synthetic rubber are as follows-

• It is relatively cheaper and is a more cost effective alternative than natural and synthetic rubbers. It helps to reduce the price of products that use rubber like wire insulations, hoses, mulches, flooring, hard tires, drainage systems etc.
• Less energy is used during the process of recycling as compared to the manufacturing of natural rubber. Unlike synthetic rubber that needs to be burnt in an open area, whilst it releases toxic gases, recycled rubber does not have to be burnt.
• It is suited to a number of purposes like making material for flooring and mulch for use in gardens.
• It can be mixed with concrete for building materials that act as thermal insulators and provide sound absorption properties.
• Moisture-absorbing properties – Reclaimed rubber has great moisture absorbing properties that are widely used in gardening and soil leveling due to its ability to preserve moisture and hinder weed growth. It is used in numerous polyurethane-based adhesives, giving high-performing or premium-grade adhesives that are used as flexible waterproofing sealants. They have the added advantage of being volatile organic compounds and are inflammable.
• Sound insulating properties – Various government agencies and hospitals require soundproof walls and compounds, and reclaimed rubber is cheap and highly effective for such uses.
• Energy-efficient production – The production of reclaimed rubber is much less contaminating and more energy-more efficient than that of regular rubber. At half of the price, it is also a stronger material. The need to use crude oil for production is minimal, cutting back huge costs of production.
• Strength and durability – Due to its high tensile strength and durability, reclaimed rubber is used for making conveyer belts, hosepipes and in various industries. Tire derived aggregate, made of reclaimed rubber, can be used to build highway embankments, backfills for walls and abutments, subgrade road insulation, landfill construction, drainage and septic drain fields and to strengthen shore lands around bridges and oceans.
• Reclaimed rubber can be recycled into maintenance free timber pieces that can be designed to provide proper drainage in landscaping.

Reclaimed rubber is thus a very promising substance, owing to its great edge over natural and synthetic rubber