Projects in textiles

Increase the proportion of secondary raw materials and reuse of textiles at a time when global resources are becoming increasingly limited and both consumers and authorities are placing higher demands on reducing the environmental impact of textile production.

The amount of textile waste consisting of polyester–cotton blends (polycotton) is close to one hundred million tonnes annually, most of which is currently incinerated or sent to landfill. The household products industry, in turn, relies largely on virgin fossil-based plastics, amounting to hundreds of millions of tonnes globally.

The leather industry is becoming increasingly aware of consumer concerns about the use of animal by-products and the negative environmental impact (high global carbon dioxide emissions). Today, the synthetic-based leather is commonly made from fossil-based raw materials and lack biodegradability, thus leading to plastic pollution.

The project explores pathways to a sufficiency-oriented circular economy. Rather than only focusing on stopping and slowing resource flows, the project explores ways to reduce resource use and thus contribute to a circular economy that fits within the planetary boundaries.

Textile manufacuring is responsible for considerable carbon dioxide emissions and two thirds of the textile fibre feedstock is still fossil-based. The KELPTEX project aims to develop biobased textile fibres from seaweed, emphasising resource- and energy-efficiency at the various stages of the production.

Textile manufacuring is a particularily unsustainable industry, both with respect to the fibre feedstock and the dyeing process. The ALLGAE project aims to develop 100% algae-based sustainable textile fibres from seaweed side streams.

Reducing the environmental impacts of textile production requires prolonging the useful life of clothes. Repairing and mending clothes used to be common societal practices, now wiped out to a great extent by mass production. The project examines whether and the conditions under which consumers are willing to repair clothes.

The textile value chain involves a diverse range of materials, end users, and complex applications. Although there is a shift towards greater sustainability, progress is slow and requires more innovative technologies to address issues like low recycling rates, substitution of hazardous substances, and chemical pollutants.

The textile industry is one of the most resource-intensive sectors in the world; every year 116 million tons of textiles are produced globally and large amounts end up as waste. This project will deep dive into an efficient classification system of textiles, that can enable the reuse and recycling of materials.

This project aims to develop a waterless fiber recovery technology (based on supercritical carbon dioxide - scCO2) and scale it up through collaboration with key industry players, with the goal of recycling 100,000 tons of blended textiles by 2030 and promoting a circular textile industry.

Unlocking the potential of a new generation of biobased and hybrid fabrics for sustainable e-textile.

The development of high tech and high value applications for bioplastics may be one key to accelerate growth of the bioplastics sector. This project was a prestudy towards one such application: biobased piezoelectric fibres (piezofibres) for use in technical textiles.

How can disposable products in healthcare be collected and recycled safely and sustainably? This project conducted practical experiments that formed the basis for proposals on circular business models.

This project aims to develop scalable extraction procedures for biomolecules from discarded side-streams originating from mycoprotein food production. Different underutilised compounds produced through fungal fermentation are targeted and will once purified be exploited in formulated biobased additives for textile functionalisation.

The consumption of textiles worldwide is extensive and continues to grow with increasing population, urbanization, and economic growth. The textile industry encompasses the manufacturing of clothing, household textiles, technical textiles, and much more, making it one of the largest industrial sectors globally.

Garment repair can significantly extend the useful life of clothing and reduce the amount of new materials required for textile production. CIRCLEWEAR project has developed a scalable digital clothing repair platform informed by studies on consumer preferences and viable business models.