PROPOSAL TO RECYCLE WASTE TYRES IN ACCRA THE CAPITAL OF

GHANA.
Submitted by MORGAN EDWARD | Mechanical Engineering, KNUST | December 29, 2017

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Accra is the capital of Ghana and a home to most Ghanaians with different ethnic backgrounds as well as
foreigners. Yet, this capital and the health entire region are under the threat from waste tyres. Tyres are
imported into Ghana from Europe and most of these tyres are waste of these European countries. Both short
term and long term actions are needed in order to prevent this catastrophic impact caused by these imported
waste tyres. It is reported that in Nigeria, there are already 20,000,000 tons of waste tyre spread around
somewhere and also, it is anticipated every year another 300,000 – 400,000 tons are added to the stockpile.
Hence, there is a need to demonstrate the effectiveness of implementing certain laws against importing and
also investing resources into the cleanliness of Ghana. With support from higher bodies for cleaning of
Accra and Ghana as a whole, my team respectfully requests enough fund a two year demonstrative project
to clean up the tyres in Accra in order to prevent waste tyres from being imported into the country and to
maintain a clean and healthy environment.

BACKGROUND
HISTORY
Tyre is one of the sophisticated product ever made as a result of the compounds it is made of. These
compounds gives it its properties that make them desirable as tyres. Tyres are immune to biological
degradation hence very durable and this makes it very difficult to dispose of or recycle. Local people use it
to make slippers. Others dispose the tyres of by burning and collecting the metals in it for scraps. Though
these actions reduced the amount of waste tyres in the country, it contribution was almost insignificant and
also it increased environmental pollutions like air pollution.

REQUIREMENTS
Accra being the capital of Ghana is struggling with the problem of recycling of waste tyres. Not only is the
air being polluted from burning of these tyres but also water bodies. Abossey Okai is a suburb of Accra
where both new and waste tyres are greatly sold. It is closest to the Korle lagoon.

During wet season, storm water dislodges tyres and carries thousands of them through the lagoon into the
sea. This affect aquatic life and also inhabitants of the sea shore since some of these waste tyres wash off
to the shore and cause littering.

Others accumulates water and bread mosquitoes which infect inhabitants with malaria. This goes a long
way to affect the economy of Ghana since money must be put into the curing of these affected people and
also clean the shores. The country also loses since limited amount of fishes would be obtained from fishing
causing scarcity.
 SOLUTION
Government must enforce laws which were implemented to curb the import of goods that are going to
generate waste in the country that cannot be gotten rid of easily.

Agencies in charge of the cleanliness of Ghana should be up to task in order to achieve certain goals.

The solution this project is proposing is to recycle the waste tyres by undergoing a pyrolysis process.

1. Waste tyre is passed through a waste tyre crushing production line where the tyre is cut into pieces and
fed into feeding machine where it is preheated then transported into the reactor. Materials are driven forward
in the reactor and pyrolysed. The gas passes through the evaporation pipe on top of the reactor and enters
the gas liquid separator. The broken down carbon black and steel wires are discharged by the auto
discharging machine into the carbon black conveyor and the steel wires are separated from the carbon black
with the magnetic selector. The carbon black will be given to the carbon black processing machine.
2. The condensed fuel oil comes into relay tank. When oil level of relay tank up to the fixed height, is
pumped into the storage tank.
3. The waste gas was discharged from the top of relay tank into waste gas buffer tank, inhaled by the vacuum
pump into air liquid separator, where the waste gas is separated from liquid and goes into water sealed tank.
From the water sealed tank, waste gas enters the hot air furnace for burning.
4．Cooling water is sucked by the pump from water recycling pool and sent to the condenser tubes.
Water travels in the tube from bottom to top and returns to recycling water pool.
5．Steam is generated by the boiler and is passed to the pyrolysis kettle feeding steam inlet, discharging
steam inlet and kettle internal inlet, being over heated by the kettle and finally enter the kettle.
6．Fuel oil is dehydrated in the storage tank, sucked by the pump, passing the filter and goes into the fuel
oil tank. The oil is supplied to the steam boiler and hot air furnace.
It is very important that the oil generated is with minimum water content and good quality because of the
use of nitrogen generator and nitrogen atmosphere in the feeding and burning line.

PROPOSAL
VISION
Our vision is to improve the environment and reduce pollution by offering new alternatives of disposing of
tyres.

GOALS
o To upgrade the products manufactured from used tyres.
o To release all the beneficial compounds hidden in the tyres for good use.
o To reduce a greater proportion of pollution from tyre disposal.

DELIVERABLES
Title Description Usage
 Crude oil It makes up about 45% of the tyre Can be used as fuel directly or
distilled to obtain different types
of fuels.
Steel wire It makes up about 15% of the Can be used directly or combined
tyre. with other metals.
Carbon black It makes up about 30% of the Can be refined to obtain fine
tyre. carbon.
Gas oil It makes up about 10% of the Can be used as fuel in factories.
tyre.

TIMEFRAME
This project has both short term action and long term action. The short term action is to reduce the
amount of waste tyre drastically in Abossey Okai a suburb of Accra. This will take about two years.
The long term action which is to totally or about 70% reduce these waste tyres in Accra and Ghana as a
whole. This action will take about ten years to complete.

BUDGET
OPERATING EXPENSES TOTAL REQUEST
Transportation to project site GHC 15,000
Shredding tyre cost ghc 140 per ton GHC 140,000
Signage for designated project site GHC 4,500
Transportation of collected tires to shredder GHC 45,000
facility at ghc 140 per ton

Subtotal GHC 204,500

Indirect cost @10% GHC 20450

GRAND TOTAL GHC 224,950