Eli5 why can’t tires be melted down and reused?

Question

Eli5 why can’t tires be melted down and reused?

In: 808

Answer 1

The molecules in rubber are chemically cross linked together forming a network of polymer strands that cannot move, like a huge net.

In comparison a thermoplastic is made of long molecules which are tangled together, but are not chemically linked so they can still move past each other and flow.

So rubber can’t be recycled but plastics can.