A one-of-a-kind research and outreach facility designed to find new uses for old tires was dedicated recently at Clemson University. Officials said the new statewide Asphalt-Rubber Technology Service (ARTS) will pave the way toward creating various uses for millions of scrap tires.

Shredded and ground tire material in resilient mixes can be turned into everything from highways and secondary roads to exit-ramp embankments, retaining walls, playground "matting," running paths and erosion-resistant beach walls. Rubberized asphalt's benefits go beyond good environmental practices - it typically cracks less, lasts longer, offers a quieter ride and provides better skid-resistance in inclement weather than standard road surfaces.

The center is funded in part by a grant awarded by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) in cooperation with the City of Clemson. The 6,500-square-foot building includes laboratory and education space.

"The facility is unique," said director Serji Amirkhanian. "It not only provides research, development and engineering expertise, but, thanks to DHEC, we can provide the seed money to help counties and cities make this technology work for them. Finding solutions to the scrap-tire problem is meaningless unless we can find a way to get the solutions into the community - that's why this center works so well," said Amirkhanian.

For DHEC, the research is a timely solution to a mounting problem. Approximately 4 million scrap tires are discarded yearly in South Carolina. About 200,000 tires are found
illegally dumped each year.

"What we learn will not only benefit South Carolina but will have international implications," said Chris Przirembel, vice president for research at Clemson University. "This could become a model for other states as well as overseas." The lab has already been visited by delegations from China, Spain, Italy, Japan and Scotland.