73% of the textile waste is burned or dumped - Circular Economy in the Textile Sector - Wanderful.stream
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73% of the textile waste is burned or dumped Circular Economy in the Textile Sector
Introduction
This publication is part of a European Interreg project.
Under the name Wanderful.stream (2020- 2023)
eight organisations in the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion are
pooling their knowledge, strengths and resources to help
small and medium-sized enterprises in the transition to
a more circular economy. Wanderful.stream offers free
guidance and support to the companies on how to valorize
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waste and residual flows and initiates and facilitates
the co-creation of circular prototypes, together with
technologists, designers and business developers.
With this publication we want to provide an overview of
the current situation (problems, needs and opportunities)
in the textile sector with regard to the circular economy.
This is part of a series of thematic publications on the
different SME waste streams in the Meuse-Rhine region.
It also forms the basis for further workshops and master
classes on the theme of textiles within the project, which
will be offered to the SMEs.
Using current examples of textile related circular economy
from the EMR region, we would like to highlight some
possible solutions and opportunities within the sector.
The intention is not to be all-embracing but to be a source
of inspiration for all SMEs, designers, technologists and
URL Links users with a heart for textiles.
This publication contains links to external websites.
You can click on the icon to go to the relevant website.
2 3Table of Content
1 Fast Fashion 6 6 New Earning Models 34-35
6.1 Rent Out
2 Influence on Environment 8
6.2 Re-Sale
& Society 7 Textile Design 36
3 Towards a Circular
14 8 Recycling 38-53
Textile Economy
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8.1 Textile Collection
8.2 Textile Sorting
4 Fibers 16-25 8.3 Recycling Techniques
8.3.1 Recycling of fabrics
4.1 Recycled Fibers 8.3.2 Mechanical fibre recycling
4.2 Natural Cellulose Based Fibers 8.3.3 Polymer recycling
4.3 Synthetic Cellulose Fibers (Manmade Cellulosic Fibers) 8.3.4 Chemical monomer recylcing
4.4 Bio Synthetic Fibers 8.4 Textile Manufacturers Based on Recycled Materials
4.5 Protein Fibers
4.6 New Sources for Natural Textile Fibers
9 Conclusions 54
5 Production Process 26-33 References/ Weblinks/ Companies 57-74
5.1 Chemicals
5.2 Processes with Less Energy or Water Consumption
5.3 Processes with Less Textile Waste
5.4 Reduction Plastic Microfiber1 ‘Fast Fashion’ phenomenon
Figure 1 Growth in clothing sales and decline in clothing use since 2000.
Fast Fashion 1 Average number of times a garment is worn before it is no longer used.
Source Euromonitor International Apparel & Footwear 2016 edition; World Bank,
World development indicators – GD (2017)
Nowadays the textile industry clothing production doubled between >100 BN
UNITS
works mainly in a linear way. Non- 2000 and 2014. Due to the growing 200
renewable resources are used to world population and middle class,
190
produce garments that are often this trend is likely to continue. ( 1 ) (2015)
worn for only a short period of time
180
after which they are usually taken to
a landfill or incinerated.( 1 ) Over the
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170
People buy
last two decades, both annual textile
production and consumption have 160
doubled (from 7 to 13 kg per person). (4)
40% more
150
This increase is mainly
due to the 'fast fashion' business 140 >50 BN
model that emerged in the 1980s.
Clothing companies reduced their clothes than 130 UNITS
costs, causing consumer prices (2000)
120
to drop drastically, and increased
the number of collections per year before 110
(2 collections per year in 2000 to
about 5 per year in 2011). In response 100
to these lower prices and greater 2000 2005 2010 2015
variation in clothing, consumers
started buying more items. The Index 100 in 2000 Number of times an item is worn
annual volume of clothes purchased World GDP Clothing Utilisation
increased by 40% between 1996 and Clothing Sales
2018. 60% of German citizens indicate
that they own more clothes than they
need. ( 2 ) Figure 1 shows that as a result
of this 'fast fashion' phenomenon,
6 72
Influence on Environment
& Society
73% of the textile
A natural consequence of the current
linear model and consumption pattern
(4)Each year, the washing of synthetic
textile products leads to the release
waste is burned
or dumped
in the textile sector, is an increased billions of microplastic fibers that
waste production and environmental eventually end up in the oceans and
impact. The textile industry is one of our food chain.
the largest, but also one of the most
polluting sectors in the world.(2) Finally, the 'Fast Fashion' phenomenon
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saddles us with a mountain of solid
The textile industry processes 98 textile waste. This includes not only
million tons of non-renewable textile waste from consumers, but
resources annually, including oil for also textile waste produced in industry
the production of synthetic fibers, (~12%) such as factory waste, clothing waste is incinerated or landfilled, and reducing the quantities that are
fertilizers for cotton production that is not sold, and so on. Figure 2 leading to a large loss of net energy incinerated or landfilled on the other.
and chemicals for textile treatment. shows textile waste per inhabitant and and material.( 1 ) Incineration also leads (2)
Furthermore, textile production, per EU country in 2012. The EU average to greenhouse gas emissions. When
including cotton cultivation, consumes is 6 kg of textile waste per inhabitant. dumped, potentially toxic chemicals Finally, the traditional textile industry
about 93 billion cubic meters of such as certain dyes from clothing can often has a negative impact on the
water per year, contributing to an Only 13% of today's global textile waste leak into the environment. In addition, environment as well as a negative
increasing water shortage in some is recycled in one way or another almost no textile item is currently social impact. Many textile workers
regions. Greenhouse gas emissions (Figure 3). Moreover, most of it is fully biodegradable. Cellulose-based work in an unsafe environment and
from the textile sector amount to 1.2 recycled into lower value applications materials such as cotton are, but are exposed to toxic chemicals. They
billion tons per year, which is more in other industries such as insulation usually cotton garments contain parts are often poorly paid, work long hours
than all international air and maritime materials, dusters, mattress filling, such as buttons or stitching in another and child labor still occurs.
traffic combined.( 1 ) For example, the etc. (Figure 3). Less than 1% of material that is not biodegradable.
production of one pair of jeans results clothing textiles are recycled into
in a consumption of about 7000 new clothing, which represents an In a circular textile economy it is
liters of water and a CO²-emission annual economic loss of 87 billion therefore important to minimize the
equivalent to a car journey of 110 km.(3) euros.(5) The remaining 73% of textile amount of waste on the one hand,
8 9Textile Waste in EU
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Cyprus 32
United Kingdom 19
Belgium 16
Luxembourg 11
A well-developed France
Italy
7
7
recycling process
Netherlands 7
EU(28 countries) 6
Czech Republic 6
ensures that more Portgugal
Austria 5
6
waste can be reused
Germany 4
Ireland 4
Lithuania 3
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for the production Slovenia
Finland
3
3
of new textiles
Spain 2
Hungaria 2
Poland 2
= Slovakia
Bulgaria 1
2
closed-loop
Esthonia 1
Croatia 1
Romania 1
recycling Sweden
Norway
1
1
Denmark 0
Greece 0
Latvia 0
Malta 0
Figuur 2 Textile waste (all NACE-activities + households) in
EU countries in 2012, kg/per capita
Bron Based on Eurostat data
10 11Worldwide Figure 3 Global material flows for clothing in 2015.
Source Ellen MacArthur Foundation 2017a
Material Flows
97% 53 Million
Tonnes Use 73%
Virgin Feedstock Annual Fibre Production Landfilled or
63% Plastic for Clothing Incinerated
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26% Cotton
11% Other
2%3
Towards a Circular
Textile Economy
The linear business model
in the textile industry The above shows that the linear
business model in the textile industry
It also introduces earning models that
counteract the current overproduction
leads to overproduction,
leads to overproduction, depletion and consumption. Furthermore, a well-
of natural resources, pressure on developed recycling process ensures
ecosystems due to pollution, a that more waste is reused for the
depletion of natural negative social impact and an ever-
increasing amount of waste. Also,
production of new textiles (closed-
loop recycling).
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resources, pressure
economic opportunities remain
underused as only a small percentage In order to get an overview of the
of textile waste is recycled. A circular current possibilities, a literature study
on ecosystems due textile economy produces from non-
polluting, biodegradable materials
was carried out on companies active
in the circular textile economy with
and uses energy and water-efficient a focus on the Euregion Meuse-Rhine.
to pollution, a negative production processes that are less
harmful to the environment.
social impact and
an ever-increasing
amount of waste.
14 154
Fibers
Polyester and other synthetic Cotton is a biodegradable fiber. MADE-BY Environmental Benchmark for Fibres
fibers such as acrylic and nylon However, chemicals used in e.g.
currently make up 63% of the total coloring processes can potentially Class A Class B Class C
textile fibers used. Their production affect soil and water once released.( 2 )
requires large amounts of fossil fuels, • Recycled Cotton • Organic Cotton • Conventional Hemp
consumes significant amounts of In 2013, the European non-profit • Mechanically •C
hemically Recyled •C
onventional Flax
energy and emits large amounts organization Made-By developed
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Recycled Nylon Nylon (Linen)
of greenhouse gases. Some of the a classification for textile fibers
• Mechanically •C
hemically Recycled • Ramie
chemicals used in their production based on the environmental impact Recycled Polyester Polyester
also end up in wastewater. When taking into account 6 parameters: • PLA
• Recycled Wool • Lyocell (TENCEL)
washed, these synthetics also emit greenhouse gas emissions, toxicity to
microplastics, which accumulate humans, toxicity to the environment, • Organic Hamp
in the oceans and our food chain. energy, water and land consumption. • Organic Flax (Linen)
Moreover, these synthetic fibers are On this basis, fibers are classified as
non-biodegradable. The ecological A (least environmental impact) to E. Class D Class E Unclassed
footprint of cotton, which accounts for Some fibres could not be categorized
33% of total textile production, is also due to insufficient available data.
• Virgin Polyester • Conventional Cotton • Silk
significant. It’s cultivation consumes However, this classification only takes
10% of the total global pesticides, into account the first life stages of • Poly-Acrylic • Virgin Nylon • Organic Wood
25% of insecticides and 2.5% of the the substance. The spinning process, • Generic Modal® • Rayon • Leather
global water consumption. This causes fabrication of the substance including (Viscose Product)
• Cuprammonium • Elastane (Spandex)
water shortages in many areas, both dyeing and end of life were not taken Rayon
• Acetate
for the local population and for nature. into account (Table 1).
• Bamboo Viscose
Toxic pesticides and insecticides are • Kapok
harmful to the workers who work with • Wool
them, but also to the environment.
Table 1 Classification of textile fibers according to environmental impact.
Source Made-By, (2013)
16 174.1 producing plants are less prone to Procotex (Dottignies, Belgium). They
Recycled Fibers diseases, so their cultivation requires also offer a wide range of other natural
less pesticides. Moreover, they and recycled fibres. In Amsterdam, the
Recycled fibers have a lower consume less water and food and Netherlands, Pina Studio produces
environmental impact than their often grow faster. The most common jumpsuits exclusively made of organic
corresponding new materials since no fiber-producing plants are described linen and cotton. The flax is produced
new input of materials is needed and part of it. C&A is the world's largest here. in France, Italy and Belgium and is
energy consumption is much lower. retailer of organic cotton. JBC then woven and dyed in Germany,
Mechanical recycling techniques are (Houthalen-Helchteren, Belgium) has Hemp grows twice as fast as cotton without the use of harmful chemicals.
less environmentally damaging than a baby collection of organic cotton. and in many types of climates, purifies Also Noumenon from Amsterdam,
chemical methods. The recycling of Other Belgian companies that have the groundwater and requires less Ink (Brussels), Lanius (Cologne) and
fibers is further discussed in more organic cotton in their range include pesticides during cultivation. Since Living Crafts (Selbitz) from Germany,
detail (see 8.3.2). Sambalou (Brussels, Belgium), Up-Rise the fibers are quite stiff, they are produce clothing with linen fibers.
(Leuven, Belgium) and Ink (Brussels). sometimes mixed with cotton to
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In the Netherlands, there are several obtain a smoother fabric. Organically Kapok is a cellulose fiber found in the
4.2 brands that use organic cotton in their grown hemp does not use artificial fruit of the kapok tree (Timell, 1957).
Natural Cellulose- clothing, often combined with other fertilizer, but these fibers are 40% The kapok fiber is 100% biodegradable
Based Fibers organic or recycled materials. For more expensive than conventional and 100% recyclable. The growth of
example, Kuyichi, Pina Studio, A-dam, hemp. Stexfibers (Arnhem, kapok requires no pesticides (Ruby,
Organic cotton is grown using organic Unrobe, Unrecorded and Noumenon the Netherlands) produces hemp 2014). However, because the kapok
pesticides and without the use of distinguish themselves from other fibres to replace cotton fibres. The fiber is a rather short fiber, it must
artificial fertilizer. The unsprayed brands in Amsterdam with their more clothing producers Ink (Brussels) always be mixed with other fibers
cotton plants are picked manually sustainable clothing. In Zwolle J-lab3l and Up-Rise (Leuven) in Belgium use in order to be spun into yarn. The
and there is no chemical post- is located and in Laren Mud Jeans also hemp in their clothing, as do Lanius harvesting of kapok is also very labour
treatment (Figure 4). However, the sells clothes made of organic cotton. (Cologne), Bleed (Helmbrechts) and intensive because the fiber-rich
high water consumption remains a Also in Germany there are numerous HempTailor (Amsterdam). pods have to be beaten down high
problem with organic cotton and brands that design sustainable up in the tree and are also irritating
has resulted in these fibers being clothing by using organic cotton and Linen comes from the flax plant. Unlike to the lungs because of the seeds
placed in a lower category by Made- other natural materials: Armedangels cotton, flax cultivation requires no that spread through the wind. (Kapok
By. Organic cotton is recognizable by and Lanius in Cologne, Living Crafts fertilizer and little or no pesticides. - lightweight and water-resistant
means of an OCS (Organic Content in Selbitz, Mandala in Munich and the With organic linen, no chemicals are textile, 2018). Flocus in Enschede,
Standard) or GOTS (Global Organic German brand Bleed in Helmbrechts. used for the growth of flax neither the Netherlands, produces textile
Textile Standard) certificate. A lot the processing of linen fibers. fibers and fabrics from kapok. J-Lab3l
of companies already use organic However, there is still a wide range of Examples of producers of flax fibres (Zwolle, the Netherlands) uses the
cotton for their collection or for a alternatives to cotton. These fiber- are Derotex (Wielsbeke, Belgium) and kapok fibers from Flocus in their
18 19Cotton Cycle
Cotton clothing. Bleed (Helmbrechts) also all bamboo clothing on the market is
uses kapok fibers in their clothing. made from bamboo viscose. BAMBOO
BELGIUM (Hechtel-Eksel, Belgium),
Ramee fibers originate from the Nooboo (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
'Boehmeria' plant, which grows best and Gesine Jost (Düsseldorf,
in a (sub)tropical climate. The plant Germany) make garments from
requires no pesticides, uses little water bamboo viscose.
and can be harvested up to 6 times a
year under good conditions. The plant
is therefore renewable, biodegradable 4.3
and above that the fibers are naturally Synthetic Cellulose Fibers
Conventional Organic white so they should not be bleached. (Manmade Cellulose Fibers)
Unfortunately, most productionplants
Cultivation with pesticides Mixed Cultivation without
use a chemical process to clean the Synthetic cellulose fibers (Manmade
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in monoculture agricultural toxins, such
fibers. cellulosic fiber, MMC) are produced
as pesticides
from wood and are therefore
Bamboo grows fast, can be harvested biodegradable. During an energetically
Bleaching, spinning, dyeing indefinitely and needs little water. intensive production process, the
with chemicals Bleaching, spinning, There are 2 methods to produce wood pulp is dissolved in chemicals
dyeing in environmentally bamboo fibers: the chemical and the after which the fibers are spun into
friendly manner mechanical method. The chemical yarn. The "preferred MMC" label was
Strong cleaning necessary method uses strong chemicals to created to identify MMCs that use
because of chemicals release the cellulose fibers from the renewable, certified wood and have
No cleaning required bamboo. This leads to the production a sustainable production process.
of bamboo viscose (see also 4.3). Viscose, also known as rayon, is the
No control of The mechanical method is a lot more most common MMC. Other synthetic
working conditions Controlled socially responsible durable. The 'woody' part of the cellulose fibers are Modal, Cupro and
working conditions bamboo plant is crushed and treated Lyocell. Modal fibers undergo a slightly
with natural enzymes. The obtained different post-treatment than viscose,
Waste water regularly natural bamboo fibers are very rough making them more wear-resistant.
ends up in nature Waste water to like linen and more expensive than Cupro is made by treating (recycled)
treatment plant bamboo viscose. (Ali & Sarwar, 2010). cotton cellulose with cuprammonium
This method of production only salt. Lyocell (TencelTM), produced by
Figure. 4 Cycle of conventional versus organically grown cotton. occurs on a small scale as it is a labor- the Austrian manufacturer Lenzing
Source Waschbär intensive and costly process. Almost (Lenzing), is the most sustainable
20 21Figure 5 Chair made of seaweed yarn,
naturally dyed with seaweed
Source Studio Nienke Hoogvliet
Also from seaweed can cellulose 4.4 U.S.A.) and bioPET (Polyethylene
be won. With this cellulose fabrics Bio Synthetic Fibers Terephtalate) from Toray (Tokyo,
can be made such as viscose and Japan).
modal. Smartfiber (Rudolstadt, Biosynthetic fibers consist of
Germany) makes Seacell, seaweed polymers made from renewable, Bio-based poly-amide (bioPA)
fibers. Dried seaweed is crushed, biological sources such as agricultural (bio-based nylon) is a biopolymer
finely grounded and embedded in a crops, e.g. corn and reed or even made from castor oil (100% renewable
lyocell cellulose wood fiber. Palgero better, waste products. The shift from source) but is not biodegradable. The
(Vlotho, Germany) sells clothing synthetic fibers made from fossil main manufacturer of this polymer
from Seacell. Tjeerd Veenhoven fuels to bio-based fibers is only in its is the French company Arkema
(Groningen, Netherlands) is working infancy. PLA (Polylactic Acid) fibers (Rilsan). Mandala (Munich, Germany)
on a research called ALGAEFABRICS, are considered a fully biobased and makes yoga clothing out of this
textile production from Cladophora, biodegradable alternative to polyester. material.
MMC as the production process uses a seaweed species that exists out of PLA is produced from fermentable
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a less toxic solvent in a closed-loop 70% cellulose. Also in Studio Nienke sugars, currently mainly from corn. The Aachen-Maastricht Institute
system where the chemicals are Hoogvliet researched is being done Alternative sugar sources such as for Biobased Materials (AMIBM),
reused (Viscose fibres production to the production of textile from waste streams are being investigated. MODINT (Zeist, the Netherlands)
- An assessment of sustainability seaweed (Figure 5). Sugar is fermented to lactic acid, and CHILL work together on the
issues, 2017). In Germany Living Crafts which after further conversion can project 'BioTex Fieldlab' with the
(Selbitz), Lanius (Cologne), Mandala be polymerized to PLA. Finally, these aim to produce bio-based fibers.
(Munich) and Bleed (Helmbrechts) PLA pellets are converted into textiles. The partners in the BioTex Fieldlab
produce garments made out of lyocell The production process costs half work closely together with
fibers. Noumenon from Amsterdam of the energy needed to produce two Amsterdam-based industrial
uses lyocell in her clothing collection cotton. Nature Works LLC (Minnetonka, producers of biopolymers, Avantium
but also Cupro. Ink (Brussels) also U.S.A.), one of the larger suppliers and Corbion. Besides the biopolymers
designs clothing made out of lyocell. of biopolymers, sells PLA under the polyethylene furanoate from
Wijld (Wuppertal) makes T-shirts out brand name Ingeo. In Belgium, Galactic Avantium (Amsterdam) and PLA from
of lyocell and J-lab3l makes clothes (Celles) produces PLA from a variety Corbion, BioTex also focuses on other
out of FSC viscose. of food crops. biopolymers, such as bioPET, bioPA
and others, for the development of
Alternative biopolyesters are only textile applications.
partially bio-based and non-
biodegradable such as PTT (Poly
Trimethylene Teraphtalate) from
DuPont™-Sorona® (Wilmington,
22 234.5 casein and is therefore completely 4.6
Protein Fibers bio-based and biodegradable. New Sources for Natural
Moreover, this casein is extracted from Textile Fibers
Protein fibers are usually of animal a waste product, i.e. cow's milk ,
origin, such as wool and cashmere. which is no longer marketable. Qmilk Numerous projects are currently
These fibers are biodegradable, but fibers are used by, among others, underway in Belgium, the
their production is associated with the clothing brand Vaude. Netherlands and Germany to
the emission of animal greenhouse produce textiles from a diverse
gases. Alternative protein fibers Another protein fiber, on the market group of alternative, natural raw
have recently been introduced on since 2015, is Biosteel fiber, produced materials. These natural fibers are
the market. Casein fibers are made by AMSilk (Planegg, Germany). It is still in a research phase and are Figuur 6 Handbag (prototype)
from the casein protein in milk. Most a synthetic spider silk and therefore currently not commercially available. made of apple leather
casein fibers are produced by mixing completely biodegradable. AMSilk Bron Anouck Kuyckx & APPEAL
the casein with acrylonitrile, thus ferments genetically modified E. coli “Tomatentextiel” in Rotterdam aims
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depositing the casein on a synthetic bacteria that make the proteins from to produce textile from tomato stems.
acrylic fiber. As a result, the casein spider silk which can eventually be The tomato fiber is too short to be
fiber is more likely to be considered spun into a yarn. used as a natural fiber. Therefore the viscose from cow manure
a semi-synthetic product. The German cellulose is first loosened and then containing up to 35% cellulose. The
Q-milk (Hannover), however, produces polymerized into a filament that can production method of these cellulose
a textile fiber that consists 100% of be processed into yarn (MMC). Two fibers consumes less energy and
projects use fibers from fruit waste as chemicals compared to the wood pulp
a basis for the production of a leather industry.
alternative. The aim of the APPEAL
project is to convert fruit waste into Neffa /MycoTEX (Utrecht,
Fruit waste, cow manure
a fully biodegradable biomaterial the Netherlands) and Mylium
with different applications such as (Wageningen, the Netherlands)
single-use plastics, agricultural foils, produce a 100% biodegradable
or mushrooms as a basis decoration and textiles (Figure 6).
Fruitleather Rotterdam manufactures
material based on mycelium, the "root"
of mushrooms. When the material
for the production of
their fruit leather mainly from fruit is fully grown (to the desired shape,
waste from mangos. thickness, ...) the material is baked so
that the living mycelium cells die and
natural textile fibers Inspidere BV (Eindhoven, the
Netherlands) produces bio-plastics
the material dries.
such as cellulose acetate and
24 255
Production Process
companies are trying to contribute to is being done into techniques that
the development of more sustainable provide better coloring with natural
textile chemicals. dyes.
When switching to more 'green' The Dutch Caffeink (Rotterdam)
chemicals, many companies appear produces a dark ink based on coffee
to focus on dyes. To dye clothing, waste. Classically, the coffee grounds
The production process of textiles has a significant ecological traditional dyeing methods use dyes are burned, composted or fermented
impact in terms of chemicals, energy and water consumption and in excessive quantities where large into biogas, resulting in the loss of
also leads to the production of textile waste and microplastics. quantities are discharged. Most of valuable substances. Caffeink collects
Here are some technological innovations from companies on the today's dyes are synthetic and are collected coffee waste, extracts a
German-Dutch-Belgian territory to reduce this ecological footprint. chemically made from petroleum, dark pigment from it and then sells
producing toxic waste. Dyes such it to ink producing companies.
as amine-containing azo dyes are The coffee pigments can be used in
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5.1 often persistent, which is a desired paper, textiles, food and cosmetics.
Chemicals pesticides, dyes, detergents, coatings property in fabric, but not in the Knipidee (Almere) uses natural dyes
but also substances used during environment. They sometimes also to color their textiles. They extract
Many harmful chemicals such as machine maintenance, waste water contain heavy metals such as lead these from plants and animals such
solvents, dyes, heavy metals and treatment, etc.... or cadmium. Moreover, under certain as indigo, galnuts, pomegranates,
surfactants are used in the production circumstances, some dyes degrade to rhubarb, etc. Natural fabrics such as
of textiles. These not only pose a In Belgium, Buckman, a company that carcinogenic substances, while others cotton, silk,... absorb these dyes best.
threat to the health of textile workers sells chemicals for tanning leather cause allergic reactions.( 1 ) A more Synthetic fabrics, on the other hand,
and clothing wearers, but can also and Eurodye - CTC, which produces sustainable textile sector therefore will usually get a lighter color. Nooboo
escape into the environment due to dyes, lubricants, detergents and switches to natural dyes. These are (Amsterdam) released a collection
e.g. poor waste water treatment.( 3 ) softeners for textiles, support the extracted from natural materials such that was colored completely natural
ZDHC program. In the Netherlands, as plants and are also biodegradable. with plants from Bali. They use the
The Dutch ZDHC (Zero Discharge chemicals producers Smit & Zoon, Designer Anke Van Asbroeck, among leaves of mango, tarum (indigo),
of Hazardous Chemicals) unites Stahl and Tanatex chemicals are others, did research within Circle mahogany and the bark of secang
textile brands in a collaboration affiliated. Numerous German Sector (Genk) on how to make (sapan wood) to produce the 4 basic
to ban harmful chemicals. For this companies selling chemicals for the dyes from food waste under the name colors (green, blue, yellow and red).
purpose they drew up the MRSL manufacture and finishing of textiles Re.Color. Natural dyes give a soft, From these basic colors they make
(Manufacturing Restricted Substances (including dyes, paints, pigments) pleasant color to the textile. However, all other colors. Kuyichi (Utrecht)
List) list of chemicals banned during also support the work of ZDHC: CHT; synthetic dyes are cheaper and can produces his jeans from 100% organic
the entire production process. The Dr. Petry; Lanxess; Pulcra Chemicals; achieve a wider and more intense cotton, colored with the natural indigo.
list includes products ranging from Rudolf group and Trumpler. All these color spectrum. However, research Ecological textiles (Roermond)
26 27TO DYE OR
NOT TO DYE?
is a fabric distributor with a range of water, energy and chemicals.
of fabrics that are naturally dyed. The laser machine is used to burn
Still garments (Berlin), Living Crafts blurs in denim to replace sandpaper
(Selbitz) and An'tchi (Brussels) also or chemicals. Their ozone technology
color their clothing with natural dyes. is used for bleaching textiles instead
of bleach, chemicals or stones. The
machine sucks in atmospheric air and
5.2 converts it into ozone, giving garments
a natural, worn-out appearance. At
Other Bleaching
Processes with Less Energy
the end of the cycle, the machine
or Water Consumption
transforms the ozone back into air.
Most textile production steps,
such as sanding, washing, dyeing,
Finally, there is the E-Flow machine,
a technique that produces 24%
bleaching and finishing, consume nanobubbles using water and an
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large amounts of water (Figure 7). In
order to make the textile industry less
added product to treat the garment.
These bubbles then transport this 38%
environmentally damaging, at each product into the garment. The process
of these steps an attempt can be can be compared to a washing
made to save on energy and water machine filled with steam instead of
consumption. DyeCoo (Weesp, water. The technique can be used to
the Netherlands) uses a CO² soften or create 3D effects without
using a lot of water and chemicals. So
14%
technology for dyeing textiles. The
technique uses CO² under pressure all these 3 techniques provide great
in which dyes dissolve easily. Thanks water, chemicals and energy savings.
Boilers 8%
to the high permeability of CO², dyes
are transported deep into the fibers,
16%
creating vivid colors. CO² - dyeing 5.3
thus requires no added process Processes with Less
chemicals to dissolve dyes and is Textile Waste Printing
completely anhydrous. Dyeing
Cutting patterns from fabrics
The jeans manufacturer Kuyichi invariably leads to cutting loss. These
(Utrecht, the Netherlands) uses laser, fabric residues can be recycled
ozone and E-flow as new washing on the one hand (see further). Figure 7 Conventional colouring processes – water consumption (%)
techniques to minimize the waste However, some companies have Source Biria Cellulose
28 29developed techniques to reduce or consuming and expensive technique oceans. These microfibers not only
even eliminate this cutting loss. For and is therefore hardly used in the have a negative impact on maritime
example, Vepa - the furniture factory clothing industry. Another example ecosystems, but also on human
(Hoogeveen, the Netherlands) is Knit-O-mat (Netherlands). They health via the food chain (Figure 8).( 1 )
upholsters furniture in which a CNC developed a 3D knitting process using Alternative substances such as cotton
cutting machine calculates the most state-of-heart knitting machines. The do not secrete microplastics. There
optimal way of cutting in order to machines are capable of knitting entire are also techniques to capture these
minimize leftover material. Moreover, garments or other forms, resulting in microfibres during washing (use of
textile remnants are completely little or no waste. special washing products or filters in
recycled into mats. the washing machine) or production
A new seamless, three-dimensional techniques that reduce the release of
The classic way of producing clothing textile design technology is used microfibres.
starts from a flat fabric that is cut into by UNSEAM (Amsterdam &
pieces, with the associated cutting Bloemendaal, the Netherlands). The Swedish research program
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loss, and then usually manually sewn Through the use of digital techniques Mistra Future Fashion describes 3
together into a 3D piece. Fully fashion and special shrinking materials, 3D possible ways to reduce the release of
knitters, on the other hand, create patterns are created in the clothing, microplastics:
less waste by knitting loose pan parts which requires less labour-intensive
that are then linked together. To make actions and results in less cutting 1 Reducing brushing (used to create
a sweater, for example, a front panel, loss. This enables textile brands to fabrics such as fleece).
back panel and two sleeves are knitted produce their products to measure 2 Replacing traditional cutting
into shape and then stitched together. and on demand, closer to the methods by ultrasound or laser
By applying this method residual end user, leading to a decrease in cutting.
material is avoided. A workshop where overproduction (Figure 9). 3 Removing microplastics in the
machine-knitted articles are produced production phase.
is “Breienbreien” (Dordrecht). They
produce clothing through "full fashion" 5.4 Another European project on this
knitting and "knit and wear" knitting. Reduction Plastic Micro Fibers theme, Life - Mermaids (Italy), reports
"Knit and wear" knitting is the knitting that treating the textile with certain
of seamless articles that no longer Every year, billions of microplastic excipients such as polysilk-CTE and
need to be cut or stitched; the articles fibers end up in the environment by chitosan reduces microfibre loss. They
come out of the knitting machine washing plastic-based textiles such also described 4 polymer additives to
completely in a 3D shape. The latter as polyester, acrylic and nylon. Textile be added to detergents that reduced
technique also avoids residual production and use is thus responsible fiber loss.
material, but it is a complicated, time- for 35% of all microplastics in the
30 31The Problem of Microplastics
Every year,
billions of microplastic Washing liquid Wastewater Wastewater
fibers are released &
Synthetic clothes
with microplastic
particles
treatment
plants
into the environment by
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washing plastic-based
textiles such as
polyester, acrylic
and nylon.
Health problems Species eat Micro plastics
caused to microplastics, thus attract organic
animals & humans entering the food chain pollution
Figure 8 The problem of microplastics
Source Life Mermaids
32 336
New Earning
Models
STAY AWHILE (Germany) gives you and Streisant second hand clothing.
two options to rent clothes: you can In Liège are La Gerabotte, Le balon
go for the self-selection box, with this rouge, Les Petits Riens and Boutique
you choose which clothes you rent. If Terre stores who sell second-
you go for the self-selection box, they hand clothing. In Maastricht there
will put together an individual box with is also a secondhand store called
fresh looks for you. Secondhand4All. In Aachen there are
Nowadays, the majority of the fashion offer consists of fast boutiques like Second Hand Korner,
fashion products. In large retail chains, every six weeks new and Also at Myonbelle , Rent , Großformat and Kinder Second Hand
inexpensive collections are available. On average, a garment is worn Dresscoded , Kilenda , Kindoo for money box that sell second hand
only 7 times. As fashion journalist Dana Thomas describes in her and many others in Germany you clothing.
book Fashionopolis - The price of fast fashion and the future of can rent clothes.
clothes, "Our current consumption pattern and love of fast fashion Second-hand clothing can be sold by
is like a drug addiction. We've taken an overdose and need to the user on second-hand sites such
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rehabilitate". Clothing could be worn for a much longer period of 6.2 as tweedehands.be, ebay, bobbo,
time. Solutions for this are: renting and borrowing clothes or reselling Re-Sale marketplace or on Facebook. The
the clothes after a first life (vintage clothes). disadvantage of this is that it is less
In the Netherlands, it is estimated safe than specialized websites or
that 55% of the textiles collected are apps. United Wardrobe (Utrecht)
6.1 Circos (Amsterdam, Netherlands) is suitable for reuse, 37% for recycling and The Next Closet (Amsterdam)
Rent Out a webshop that rents out clothing for and 8% are waste. Of course, many are platforms that focus on second
children up to 3 years old. By renting / second-hand clothing is also passed hand clothing. Vinted is an online
Closet in the Cloud and Tale Me renting out less material is wasted so on directly from citizen to citizen, marketplace that originated in
in Belgium rent out clothing at less new cotton has to be produced. traded by them through the internet Lithuania and is active in more than
reasonable prices. or offered to thrift stores. Many thrift ten countries, including Belgium and
Many children's items are only used stores also sell second-hand clothing the Netherlands. United Wardrobe, The
Besides selling ecological denim, MUD for a short period of time. Mic mac in the EMR region: there are more Next Closet and Vinted work both via
JEANS (Laren, the Netherlands) minuscule works with you to draw up than 6 thrift stores in Liège, 24 in website and app. On the app Swapp
also offers the rental service 'Lease the list of things you need for your baby Belgian Limburg, 77 in Dutch Limburg (Hoorn, the Netherlands) clothing,
a Jeans'. This service is completely on the way. You can buy these items at and 13 in the German part of the EMR jewelry and accessories can be
focused on sustainability. You borrow half the new price and if you take good region. Numerous other second-hand exchanged, bought or sold.
a pair of jeans until it is completely care of them, you can bring them back stores offer used clothes a new life.
worn out and then these jeans are into the Mic mac miniscule cycle. In the Limburg capital Hasselt sell
processed into a new one. Twenty Second Vintage, Hallelujah,
Ladyland, Chou-Fleur kids, Cinderella
34 357
Textile Design
A cradle-to-
cradle certified Currently, most textile companies
have little alignment between the
C&A (Belgian-German-Dutch)
developed a cradle-to-cradle
T-shirt can be
textile design and the recycling certified T-shirt made entirely of
process needed afterwards. Often organic cotton, including the stitching.
mixtures of different materials are The T-shirt was treated with safe
fully composted used which are difficult to separate
after use. Even when garments are
chemicals and colored with non-
toxic paint. All this ensures that the
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labeled as 100% of a pure material, T-shirt can be fully composted when
or recycled when they can still contain small amounts
of other materials, for example in the
it cannot be worn again or recycled.
it cannot be
seams. ( 1 ) One of the prerequisites for
a circular textile processing concept is
the use of as pure textiles as possible.
worn again. Separating textiles can
be quite time consuming. Labels,
zippers, buttons,... need to be
removed completely.
Wear2go from Valkenswaard, the
Netherlands uses a patented sewing
thread in combination with microwave
technology to completely disassemble
garments. Resortecs (Waarschoot,
Belgium) solves this problem by
providing a thread "smart stitch" that
easily dissolves at high temperature
so that zippers and buttons can be
easily removed.
36 378
Recycling
8.1 proceeds from the resale go to
Textile Collection development projects all over the
world. We see an analogous project
Worldwide, about 20% of all textile in the 'WE TAKE IT BACK' recycling
waste is collected for reuse or programme of C&A (Dutch chain).
recycling. However, there are large For each bag a customer brings in,
regional differences. In Germany, for he receives a discount voucher of
In Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany there are numerous example, 75% of discarded clothing is 15%. I:CO then collects and processes
companies that contribute to the textile recycling chain including collected, while in the US and China all collected clothing. If the clothes
collection, sorting, recycling to the redevelopment of new products. it is only 10-15%. However, many of cannot be worn again, they can
After recycling, the textile pieces that are still usable end up on the the garments collected in Western be given a new life in all kinds of
second hand market. Other materials are reduced to dust, usually after countries are exported to countries other forms: from cleaning cloths to
fibrousification, from which new products are produced, such as new such as Asia and Africa, where they furniture,...
garments, or to lower value applications such as cleaning rags, bags, do not have their own collection
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insulation materials... In Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany, for infrastructure. In the end, therefore,
example, a large number of companies are involved in the collection, these clothes often end up in landfills. 8.2
sorting and recycling of used textiles. Examples from the EMR region Textile Sorting
include Recytex Europe (Seraing) and Groupe Terre (Herstal), both Textile collection is usually organized
active in the collection and triage of used textiles. by a number of commercial and social Once textile is collected, it must
organizations. However, more and be sorted into separate material
Recycling encompasses a whole chain of textile collection, sorting more fashion chains are starting their streams suitable for the various
and a range of recycling technologies. A number of specific initiatives own textile collection. For example, recycling techniques. Nowadays this
around these themes are described below. JBC (Houthalen-Helchteren, Belgium) sorting is mainly done manually. This
offers a permanent collection of process could be greatly facilitated
clothing in all stores. Thanks to by developing optical sorting
a collaboration with Wereld Missie technologies that increase the speed
Hulp (Boechout, Belgium) and Wolkat of the process.
(Tilburg, the Netherlands), usable
clothing is resold second hand and Four European research projects
the rest is sold as raw material for have developed pilot facilities for
new products. Previously, up to recognition and sorting equipment
Figure 9 UNSEAM Seamless design 35% of the collected clothing was a based on near-infrared spectroscopy
of the textile process by Bas Froon waste product, now this is reduced (NIR) and visual spectroscopy (VIS)
and Karin Vlug to 5 to 10%, which is also incinerated for sorting textile waste by fiber type
Source Unseam to generate energy. Moreover, the and color: SIPTex (i. s.m. a.o. Boer
38 39group), Fibresort (with a.o. Valvan 8.3
Baling Systems (Menen, Belgium) Recycling Techniques
and Wieland Textiles (Wormerveer,
SMEs play a crucial
the Netherlands), Identex by In order to be able to convert textile
Textiles4Textiles (in collaboration waste into recovered textiles, there
with a.o. Wieland Textiles and the are different types of recycling
Laserzentrum Hannover) and Resyntex
(Resyntex, 2019). These sorting
technologies. Some of these are
already on a commercial level, role in the Euroregion
devices detect and sort clothing other techniques are still under
by type and color of fiber using
spectrography. Because each type
development or have difficulties to be
cost competitive with newly produced
and are the driving
force behind a
of fiber shows a unique distribution textile material. Also, there is still only
of the color spectrum, the computer limited know-how on separating mixed
can make a quick analysis of the textile materials. Recycling can take
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fabric in terms of composition, color
and structure of the fibers used. The
place at the level of fabric, yarn, fibers,
polymers (mechanical or chemical) circular economy.
analysis is followed by transport by and monomers (Figure 10).
conveyor belt to the place intended
for the group of garments in question.
For the clothing industry, this precise
and fast triage offers the perspective
of a very large and consistent supply
of high quality raw materials from
discarded garments. The supply of
the necessary technology for the
transition to a circular textile economy
is thus there. Once the old textiles
have been sorted, they can easily be
processed into new textiles.
40 41Routes for Re-use of Textile Closed Loop Recycle,
Up-or Downcycling
Open-Loop Recycling,
Downcycling
Figure 10 Classification of textile reuse and recycling routes Energy Recovery Reuse
Source Medium
Fibre Polymers, Product/Garment Yarn Spinning Fabric Weaving,
Natural Fibres Cut, Sew, Trim Knitting
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Fibre Recycling,
Fabric Recycling,
Monomer/ Oligomer/
Polymer Recycling
Use Post-
Phase Consumer Heat or Electricity Burning
Bottles Waste
Rags, Blankets, Fabric, Fibre
Insulation Recyling
Post-Industrial
Waste
Renting, Trading,
Swapping, Borrowing
42 438.3.1 Pōur (Wijlre, the Netherlands) reuses made at Vanhully (Groningen, The 8.3.2
Recycling of fabrics workwear in all kinds of bags and Netherlands). Indigo Ravens (Utrecht, Mechanical fiber recycling
Recycling of fabrics uses intact pieces backpacks. Also outside the EMR The Netherlands) gives old clothing In mechanical fiber recycling, textiles
of fabric, from factory remnants region, there are many companies a second life by making new clothes are sorted according to material and
or large pieces of fabric from used in the Netherlands that do fabric out of it. HENK is a fashion label that color, after which they are torn to
clothing, to create a new textile item. recycling. In Amsterdam, companies makes clothes and bags out of fabrics fiber level. The fibers of the fabrics
This type of recycling is currently such as Hacked by, Dom, Mon Sak from the 80's and 90's and Wear Patch are thus retained and reused. The
only applicable on a small scale as and Makers Unite produce unique makes clothes and pillowcases out of largest Dutch fiber manufacturer is
it is a labor-intensive process and clothing or accessories made from old clothes. Residual textiles are also Frankenhuis (Haaksbergen) which
because of inconsistent supply. Many residual textiles. Hacked By uses used for the creation of tapestries fiberizes various textile streams
SMEs in the Netherlands, Belgium and overstock clothing as a starting point (Studio Mieke Lucia) or panels to including post-consumer clothing and
Germany recycle used fabrics into for their new clothing. They used to divide spaces (Simone Post). In Berlin industrial textiles. The two Belgian flax
new textile items. work together with H&M. The sales (Germany), the Mimycri team makes companies Derotex (Wielsbeke) and
items of H&M that were not sold rubber handbags from refugee boats Procotex (Dottignies) extend their
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In Belgium, Flagbag (Hasselt) makes were upcycled and sold in the H&M left on the beach in Greece. Also field of expertise to fiber recycling.
shoulder bags, bicycle bags or toilet flagship stores. Dom and Mon Sak Wiederbelebt from Stuttgart upcycled Derotex recycles, among other things,
bags from discarded flags, pennants produce bags, respectively from old dust into clothing. jute and sisal by fiberization of used
and sails. The clothing brand Paule clothing remnants and from rejected bags. Procotex recycles both natural
Josephe (Ghent) produces women's leather. At Makers Unite, newcomers and synthetic textile waste. RVN
and men's shirts from used men's with a migration background make Faserproduktion (Neuenmarkt) uses
Getting
shirts. In studio AMA (Ghent) they bags from old life jackets used during both natural and synthetic fibers as
make clothes from post-production the migration. In Arnhem Fraenck, raw materials for the production of
and post-consumer waste such as Schrav, Hul le kes and Wintervacht are new fibers. The fibers are used by
towels, old shirts, etc. TOP-studio
(Zellik, Belgium) stimulates designers
upcycling used or discarded textiles.
Fraenck uses cuttings from sailmakers
started with their customers in acoustic parts of
cars, mattresses, insulation panels,...
to work with recycled fabrics. In and remnants of artificial leather in
doing so, TOP-atelier tries to provide
a continuous inflow of source
their handbags. Schrav and Hul le kes
make clothes from textile leftovers.
residual The disadvantage of mechanical
fiberization is that fibers are shortened
material and focuses on innovative
sorting systems and optimal cutting
Winter coat makes jackets from old
wool blankets. Also in other Dutch textile and weakened during grinding. As
a result, fiberization often leads to
techniques to reduce cutting loss. cities they work with residual textiles. applications with a lower value (so-
Ressies Redesign from Haarlem makes called downcycling) such as use in
COFA (Sittard, the Netherlands) makes surf clothing and accessories from insulation materials, car parts, carpets
aprons and sports bags from used old wind sails or wetsuits. From your or mattresses. Vepa - the furniture
workwear from various industries. old shirt you can have a boxershort factory (Hoogeveen, the Netherlands)
44 45processes their cutting loss into a mill that produces fabrics using natural The open innovation center Texperium
type of felt that they use as padding and recycled fibers. I-did (Utrecht, the (Haaksbergen, the Netherlands) is
in their acoustic walls. VRK Insulation Netherlands) produces a high-quality specialized in consultancy in the
(Tilburg, the Netherlands) fiberizes design felt from mechanically recycled field of mechanical textile recycling
unusable clothing into a high-quality fibers from discarded textiles. Their and the use of recycled materials in
insulation product consisting of 90% goal is to create more valuable new applications. When developing
recycled cotton fibers. CEMBA (Leiden, products such as interior products, projects, they form consortia and can
the Netherlands) makes mattresses bags and accessories. make use of their pilot set-ups.
and blankets from recycled textile
fibers from the garment industry For many companies, jeans textiles are
in Bangladesh. In Belgium, Vanotex the starting point for fiber recycling. Recycled
NV (Deinze) and Debeltex (Kortrijk) DenimX (Maastricht) developed Jeans Fibre
produce synthetic production waste a composite material based on +
Overstock/
for reuse in, among other things, felt, shredded jeans fibers and the bio- Biobased
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Recollected Jeans
mattresses and fibers for the car based plastic PLA. For production, Plastic
industry. DenimX can use textile waste streams
from their customers as well as
Fibrous textiles can also be used for post-consumer waste. The material is
the manufacture of new garments suitable for the production of furniture,
(upcycling). As a result of the fiber suitcases, helmets, etc. (Figure 11). An
weakening that occurs during the analogous process can be found at Panel Lamination
MMD
recycling process, yarn production Rezign (Sliedrecht, the Netherlands).
always requires a combination with Old jeans are processed into yarn
3D
new, high quality fibers. Circular and combined with a bio-plastic to
Forming
systems S.P.C. (Amsterdam, The
Netherlands) produces Orbital
apply to a piece of furniture. Blue
LOOP (Goor, Netherlands), MUD
DENIM X
Circular Product
hybrid yarns from organic cotton JEANS (Laren, Netherlands) and HNST
and mechanically recycled synthetic (Antwerp, Belgium) unravel old jeans
fibers through their Texloop recycling to fiber level to create new clothing or Design & Engineering
process. Circularity (Heusden, The jeans. Blue LOOP mixes 30% recycled
Netherlands) makes new yarns from cotton fiber with 70% new fiber such
cutting waste and used clothing using as lyocell. The jeans from MUD JEANS Figure 11 DenimX process flow
the fibrization process to make new consists of 40% recycled denim fiber Source www.denimx.nl
products such as T-shirts. Enschede and the jeans HNST consists of no less
Textielstad is a sustainable weaving than half recycled denim fiber.
46 478.3.3 clothing and plastic bags are shredded SaXcell (Losser, the Netherlands) The starting project Upset Textiles
Polymer recyclage and processed into granules. This produces a chemically recycled (Rotterdam) wants to introduce
granulate is extruded into different textile fiber based on household an innovative recycling technology
Polymer recycling destroys the fibers profiles. These profiles can be used for cotton waste. First household cotton that makes it possible to convert
and converts them back to polymer terraces, flower boxes, sound barriers, textile waste is sorted into as pure as 100% cotton textile waste into 100%
level, leaving the chemical structure beams, etc. Wootex is as strong as possible waste stream. After sorting recycled yarn.
of the material intact. A distinction wood and comparable in use but has and removal of non-textile components
is made between mechanical and the advantage that it does not splinter such as zippers and buttons, the dry
chemical techniques. and is weather resistant. mixture is chemically decolorized
and wet spun according to a process
Mechanical polymer recycling is Pentatonic (Berlin + London, similar to the production of viscose or
done by melting plastic-based textiles Germany + UK) is a company that lyocell. The end product produces a
consisting of a single material. An uses different waste streams with its regenerated pure cellulose fiber.
example is PET that can be melted and technology and upgrades them in new
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spun into a new filament. products and applications. Their latest
collection includes a series of furniture
Waste 2 Wear is a project started by and objects made from recycled
the Dutch textile engineer Monique PET and from clothes thrown away in
Maissan. Plastic bottles are collected Europe.
From 100% cotton
from the ocean and from the coast
and mechanically recycled into yarn. ADVANSA (Hamm), in collaboration
Waste 2 Wear further processes with the Canadian company Plastic
this yarn into fabrics for various
applications.
Bank Aerelle Blue, produces a fiber
made from recycled PET.
textile waste to 100%
The project Eigendraads (Rotterdam)
converted the polyester from used
Chemical polymer recycling can be
used for both synthetic and cotton
recycled yarn
marathon shirts of the Rotterdam 2019 fabrics. The substance is dissolved by
marathon into new polyester yarn in means of solvents in order to come
collaboration with a recycler and a back to the polymer. An example is the
spinner. recycling of cotton or cellulose based
fibers to make a regenerated cellulose
Altena infra (Kampen, the Netherlands) fiber by dissolving the cellulose in a
produces the plastic Wootex from solvent, followed by spinning of the
old clothing and plastic bags. The old solution.
48 498.3.4 22Paradise (Amsterdam,
Chemial Monomer Recycling Netherlands) designs swimwear from
Econyl , a regenerated nylon from Italy
In chemical monomer recycling, (Arco). Econyl , is produced from old
Nowadays,
the polymers are further broken carpets or fishing nets. After recovery
down into individual monomers of the nylon, the fabric is depolymerized
using chemicals from which new and then regenerated into nylon of the
most recycled fibers materials are then synthesized. An
example of chemical recycling is the
same quality as new nylon.
do not come from
degradation of PET or nylon building Resyntex was a European research
blocks and polymerization of these project with partners from 10 different
molecules into a new molecule. This EU countries in which an innovative
old clothing but from technology is about to be applied to
plastic materials such as polyester
pilot installation for textile recycling
(in Slovenia) was developed. An
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and nylon, but is not yet widely automated sorting process based
other plastic sources applied to textiles due to lack of cost
competitiveness compared to newly
on infrared technology was linked to
chemical and enzymatic processes
such as PET bottles
produced polyester fibers. Nowadays, that convert textile fibers into
most recycled fibers therefore do not secondary raw materials and plastics.
come from old clothing but from other
plastic sources such as PET bottles.
For natural fibers such as cotton and
wool, chemical monomer recycling is
currently in an R&D phase.
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