When you buy a new set of tires, the old ones have to go somewhere, right? Most of them end up in huge, flammable tire dumps, which may hold millions of old tires, each one containing about a quart of oil in the rubber. If a dump catches fire, however, it can burn with a thick, toxic smoke for weeks on end.
But today, old tires are being put to good use. NASA's experience in fuel-related cryogenics helped develop processes to freeze the tires to below -200 degrees Fahrenheit so that they crumble, separating the rubber from other materials and producing what's called "crumb."
This waste is recycled into several new products, including an ingredient used to pave highways, which means your new radial tires may someday be rolling over your old ones.
Source: CNN
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