Biological Solutions to Waste Tire Management

North Americans generate   300 million scrap tires annually.

NRI Industries Inc. has initiated government-industry-university partnerships to effectively solve the problem of waste tire management. One of NRI's partners is Robert Charlebois, Assistant Professor of Biology at U of O along with Master's student David Sprott. Charlebois has received funding for two years to test the ability of a microorganism as an effective means for recycling rubber tires.

Biologists at U of O

Professor Robert Charlebois has been at the University of Ottawa since 1989; he is an Associate in the Canadian Institute of Advanced Research, and a member of the Sulfolobus Genome Project. His research primarily deals with genomics, the study of gene organization.

The purpose of the research partnership with NRI is to evaluate the effectiveness of Sulfolobus solfararicus as a key organism in the recycling process of vulcanized rubber. Vulcanized rubber, the principal component of tires, is the product of latex rubber heated with sulfur. Vulcanization creates carbon-sulfur linkages making rubber tires very strong and stable. The organism Sulfolobus solfararicus has attracted attention of researchers because of its ability to oxidize sulfur. The goal of the experiment is to evaluate the degree to which Sulfolobus solfararicus can break these carbon-sulfur bonds. A positive result would provide NRI with a new technology to recycle vulcanized rubber, however, its economical feasibility is a key factor that NRI will need to consider.

Through this partnership Charlebois has increased his understanding of the characteristics of Sulfolobus solfararicus and expects that this work will lead to a publication and perhaps a patent if the results are of commercial value. This was Charlebois's first experience in a partnership with industry and he has found it very rewarding. "I thought that there would be more tension in this kind of relationship but it has been a very positive experience and it is encouraging me to do this again."

Charlebois recognizes the value of partnerships with industry as an important contributor to economic growth. He also finds that collaborating with industry provides an interesting balance between the applied and basic sciences for university researchers.

NRI Industries Inc.

NRI Industries Inc. has been in business for over 70 years and has 600 employees in five manufacturing locations in Canada and the United States. NRI develops proprietary technologies to upgrade rubber that has become a disposal problem for our society at large. Through continuing research, new processes are developed to regenerate industrial and consumer scrap into usable materials. NRI Industries Inc. provides an important alternative to disposal for a significant proportion of the nearly 300 million scrap tires generated annually in North America.

The partnership between NRI Industries and the U of O was initiated by NRI through a contact at Dalhousie University: scientist Ford Doolittle recommended Robert Charlebois as the most appropriate technical resource for the project. Outsourcing represents a major portion of NRI's fundamental research and development strategy. President and CEO of the company, Ted Pattenden, is a strong believer in university-industry partnerships because universities provide highly educated and skilled people eager to work on problems with commercial potential. In fact, NRI has many ongoing partnerships with other Ontario universities such as McMaster and the University of Guelph.

When asked to describe his relationship with the University of Ottawa, he responds: "We have had an excellent relationship with the University of Ottawa. As we do our research under contract, contract negotiations, particularly when it comes to the ownership of intellectual property, can be difficult. This was not the case with Ottawa where there was a very professional business liaison person who handled the development of the contract. We have found both Dr. Charlebois and David Sprott to be excellent people to work with and their progress on the program to date is beyond our initial expectations".