Circular Economy Concept Tire with over 40 Percent Recycled Material

Continental has developed a tire that consists of more than 40 percent recycled materials. The tire was created as part of a circular economy project for electric vehicles.

Continental has developed a concept tire consisting of approximately 43 percent recycled materials. According to Continental, the tire demonstrates the compatibility of sustainability and performance—achieving top ratings in the EU rolling resistance label. "Our concept tire shows what is technically possible today and provides impetus for the next steps," explains Andreas Topp, Head of Platform Development and Industrialization for Passenger Car Tires at Continental.

The tire is composed, among other things, of recycled tall oil, steel, rubber, old tires, and polyester yarn made from recycled PET bottles. Tall oil is a byproduct of pulp production from softwood using the sulfate process. The oil consists mainly of fatty and resin acids.

Circular Economy of Electric Vehicles

The tire was created in the "ZEvRA" project, "Zero Emission Electric Vehicles Enabled by Harmonized Circularity." The two-year EU project aims to optimize the circular economy of electric vehicles across the entire value chain. The project will conclude this year. 

What Comes after the Project?

"The next step is to establish innovative recycling solutions on an industrial scale and create closed material cycles. This is the only way to accelerate the transformation towards a resource- and climate-friendly circular economy," says Jorge Almeida, Head of Sustainability at Continental Tires.

In addition to recycled materials, renewable raw materials are crucial. In the concept tire, their share is around 13 percent. Another approximately 25 percent is based on mass balance-certified materials. Combined with the roughly 43 percent recycled materials, more than 80 percent of the materials used in the ZEvRA concept tire come from recycled, renewable, or mass balance-certified sources.

"The ZEvRA project shows that technological progress can only fully unfold its potential when reliable and coordinated framework conditions create planning security and support the market ramp-up of new processes," describes Andreas Topp.

Demand for Uniform Criteria

Necessary for the ramp-up of the circular economy are uniform definitions for recycled materials across Europe and clearly defined criteria for when processed substances qualify as recycled raw materials. Equally important, according to Continental, are technological openness and the further development of recycling technologies and corresponding infrastructure. The company also emphasizes the need for reliable supply chains and internationally harmonized procedures for accounting material flows.

Since 2023, Continental has been using industrial carbon black recovered from end-of-life tires for the production of new solid rubber tires at its Korbach site. These tires are primarily used on forklifts. Additionally, sand, for example from foundries, is used to produce an alternative silica variant. According to the company, the share of purchased renewable and recycled production materials in Continental's tire portfolio was 28 percent in 2025 and is expected to increase to at least 40 percent by 2030.

The Partners in the ZEvRA Project

The ZEvRA project involves Fraunhofer, Eurecat in Spain, Bay Zoltan, University of Bologna, Skoda Auto, RKW Sachsen, RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, Faurecia Automotive Composites, Edag Engineering, Havel Metal Foam, Raffmetal, TU Braunschweig, Farplas, Benteler, NTNU, Toyota Motor Europe, PSA Automobiles, APRA—Automotive Parts Remanufacturers Association Europe, CRF, Polymeris, Endurance Amann, VTT, Politecnico di Milano, Sisecam from Turkey, Continental Tires, Volkswagen, Bax Innovation Consulting, and Northumbria University in England.