Penn State Researcher Shows Scrap Tires Can Be Used to Filter Wastewater

Dr. Yuefeng Xie, associate professor of environmental engineering at Penn State Harrisburg, has developed a method that uses crumb rubber to filter wastewater, which could help ease the overabundant scrap tire problem in the state and clean up the environment at the same time.

Crumb rubber is produced by chopping up and grinding waste tires to a desired size. It is currently being used in highway pavement, athletic track surfaces, playgrounds, landfill liners, compost bulking agents, various manufactured products, energy recovery and even as artificial reefs for aquatic life. Dr. Xie believes the crumb rubber could be used for treating wastewater, ship ballast water, and storm water. Through the crumb rubber method, larger solids are removed at the top layer of the filter and the smaller solids at a lower level, greatly minimizing clogging problems.

Several studies conducted by Xie show that the crumb rubber filter is much more cost effective than conventional sand or anthracite filters. Because the crumb rubber is compressible, the porosity of the particles is decreased, allowing longer filter runs at higher flow rates. The lighter weight of the media in comparison to sand or anthracite may also allow crumb rubber filters to be used in mobile treatment units for disaster relief operations. http://www.paenvironmentdigest.com/newsletter/default.asp?NewsletterArticleID=5748&SubjectID=