Recovered Carbon Black Europe Conference returned in 2023, with over 380 rCB representatives. As Europe's leading rCB industry event, the conference provides a unique opportunity for delegates to get the latest industry information and network face-to-face with global experts
2023 highlights included:
Franz holds a PhD in aerosol science from ETH Zurich. During several years of analysing airborne nanoparticles in the laboratory, he developed an analysis concept to measure the mass of single particles. As a co-founder and CEO of femtoG, a Swiss start-up, he set out to revolutionize the analysis of pigment particles and nanostructured materials.
Paul Ita runs Notch Consulting, a Massachusetts-based research company dedicated to the market research needs of the global specialty chemicals industry. Mr. Ita focuses on raw materials for the global tire and rubber industries, with a particular focus on carbon black, silica, and rubber chemicals. Through Notch, he publishes the Carbon Black World Data Book and the Carbon Black Quarterly Newsletter.
Mr. Pascal Klein is CEO and Chairperson of the Executive Board of Pyrum. He is a founding member of the company and served as General Director of Pyrum ESC GmbH since 2008. From 2018 he has held the positions as Chairperson of the Executive Board, CEO, CFO and COO of the Company and is also a board member of Pyrum S.A.
Mr Klein received his bachelor degree in 2006 in "International Management" from ISEG Strasbourg and in 2008, he received his master's degree in Business Administration (MBA) at ISM Paris and St. Johns' University New York. He won the “Concours Lépine” in 2017 and was named national winner of the “Founder Campion for Innovation” in 2012.
Educated at Oxford and The Royal Military Academy, Robert Harper has been an industrial technology entrepreneur in the circular chemicals and renewable energy sectors for 14 years. This has involved innovating and scaling several plant technologies from lab concept through to scaled production and the production of novel sustainable fuels and circular chemicals under long-term contracts with several major multinationals. He is the Co-founder and Deputy CEO of Circtec, in which role he is currently focussed on deploying a new flagship plant scale-up in the Netherlands. He pioneered the first ever REACh registration for tyre pyrolysis products in 2015 and the first ever ISCC registration for tyre pyrolysis products in 2017. In 2021 Circtec and Birla Carbon announced a long-term supply agreement and partnership for sustainability. Circtec has 2 operational plants and a third under construction, and holds full permits for 250,000 tonnes per year of end-of-life tyre processing capacity in Europe.
Dr. Hubert Hirschlag
Chemist
*20.06.1966
2017 – today: Head of Raw Material Introduction, Continental Tires
Responsible for approval, release and industrialization of all compounding materials in Continental Tires
2007 – 2016: Global Manager Supplier Development, Continental AG
Responsible for development and improvement of Suppliers for Chemicals and Fillers
1999 – 2006: Plant Manager with Clariant AG at locations in Germany and Spain
Responsible for the production of various chemicals in batch and continuous processes
Robert Weibold is the founder and head of the consulting company Weibold, focused exclusively on end-of-life tire recycling and pyrolysis. Weibold operates worldwide and helps customers successfully build and upgrade tire recycling and pyrolysis businesses. The company was founded in 1999. Over the years, Weibold gathered an international team of experts and established a large professional network involving researchers, decision-makers, and authorities. Today, Robert Weibold liaises with numerous industry players, including the world’s leading innovators. This enables Weibold to receive first-hand information about markets, new products, and innovative technologies in tire recycling and tire pyrolysis.
After achieving a summa cum laude M.Sc Degree in Chemical Engineering in Rome in 1994 on organic Materials, Mr Cialone devoted himself to the tire industry from 1995 until today. Over the last 29 years, Massimo has worked for international global companies in different roles in R&D, where he was able to gain expertise in both raw materials to compounding as well as processing. He joined Hankook - European Technical Center in 2015, where he serves a Material and Compounding Chief Specialist. Since 2019 his major focus is the development of innovative materials in the field of sustainability as well as coordinating research project in the EU area.
Alex finished his PhD at Imperial College London last year, where he published six papers related to tyre recycling, recovered carbon materials, and waste treatment in internationally recognised journals. Alex undertook numerous consultancy projects alongside his PhD and was awarded the departmental prize for the best thesis submitted in 2023. Alex now works as a Process Engineer at Orion Engineered Carbons, a major manufacturer of carbon black, where he contributes to a range of Innovation projects.
In April 2022 Frank joined Bolder Industries as Technical Sales Manager, BolderBlack Europe where is responsible for sourcing clients and selling BolderBlack to the EU market.
Frank’s career started in a lab for Melchert Electronik (electroplating), Degussa, Evonik and Orion Engineered Carbons. He then moved on to sales with Azelis, Black Bear and Philips Carbon Black Ltd (now PCBL Ltd.).
Frank has a chemical and technical background and work in the Carbon Black industries since 1994.
His Carbon Black journey started at Degussa AG in the QC lab (Carbon Black and Carbon Black oil) and moved then to QM and R&D (CB production). In 2011 he moved to the R&D and application department and trained customers and employees in using and producing Carbon Black. At this stage he was the deputy head of the application department (Rubber, Specialties and R&D).
Frank has also an education as a firefighter and was the deputy head of the Kalscheuren plant fire department from Orion Engineered Carbons in Cologne.
Frank lives in Germany, speaks German, English and French. He enjoys time with his family, music, cooking and hiking in his spare time.
Until 2019 he was involved in the volunteer fire brigade as Fire Chief Inspector in his home town.
Raffaele di Ronza is the senior application and technical solutions manager for the
Reinforcement Materials business segment at Cabot Corporation. He currently leads the EMEA technical team, which is focused on reinforcing carbons and elastomer composite solutions for tire and industrial rubber applications. With over 20 years of experience in the chemical industry, specifically in rubber value chains, he has also held various roles in R&D, particularly in tires. Raffaele earned an Executive Master of Business Administration from Politecnico di Milano and a master's degree in Industrial Chemistry from the Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico.
Prof. Dr. Jorge Lacayo-Pineda is Head of the Expert Field for Materials Evaluation at Continental, Tires, and has hold different executive positions in the Materials Labs of Continental since 1998. He is Honorary Professor at the Leibniz University of Hanover and Visiting Professor at the Qingdao University of Science & Technology. He is Chairman of Sub-Committee D11.20 Rubber Compounding Materials & Processes of ASTM International, member of the US Delegation to ISO TC 45 – Rubber & Rubber Products, Convener of the ISO Working Group TC45/SC2/WG5 Chemical Tests of Rubber, and member of the Board Council of the German Rubber Society.
Pieter ter Haar is an expert in recovered carbon black (rCB), pyrolysis, and is a former rubber compounder. He has extensive expertise managing R&D for rCB companies in Europe and North America. After obtaining his Chemistry degree from the Hanze University (Groningen, the Netherlands) he worked as a Rubber Compounder for Fenner Dunlop Conveyor Belting in the Netherlands, where he was in charge of sustainability development of rubber compounds. Pieter joined Pyrolyx/cct Stegelitz in 2015 to develop, build, and manage the first R&D competence center fully dedicated to rCB research. He is one of the founding members of ASTM committee D36 on recovered carbon black, and in his current role as Vice Chair, he leads various task groups within the committee. Pieter is currently president of Terhaar Consulting Inc. in Ontario Canada and consults internationally on various topics related to sustainability, pyrolysis and recovered Carbon Black and is part of the advisory committee for “Recovered Carbon Black World”.
