Our little friend Kermit from The Muppets were part of my childhood in Australia and that melancholy song of the little green friend lingers. And now, many years later, “green” is still the color. Or again? In view of all mankind and green friends we must act. But how?
Sustainability is a driving force of doing business today yet is also very complex. Speaking of the textile industry, what does “sustainability” mean? In many cases, the mere source of the raw material is considered. Though this is an important indicator, it is not that simple. What are we considering? How was that raw material produced? Obtained? What was needed for production? How much energy? Water? And what about the chemicals involved, even “simple” ones like fertilizers, bleach, or dyestuffs? Are secondary production steps needed? And so forth.
But is there not enough “raw material” available already today? Would it not be sustainable to reduce consumption, use products longer where possible, reuse those, and recycle them? The solution is advanced (molecular) recycling. This means not to go back to the very first “harvesting” steps, but smartly reusing what we already have. Still, that is easier said than done.
The task is huge, so best start with a specialty product that has an active community and multiple pillars in place already: branded high performance flame-retardant polyester known in the textile contract business for more than 40 years and used by a community eager for sustainable solutions. As a man-made product, the ingredients of polyester can be selected. By working together with industry
partners, knowledge is being actively developed. PET can be advanced recycled and broken into its single base materials. But would it be possible to produce high-end FR modified polyester and extrude filament yarns that pass the important FR textile fire standards, matching the performance levels of virgin material?
Advanced recycling has a very big advantage over mechanical recycling as it allows modifications, like a flame retardant one, at polycondensation level. This type of modification is the most sturdy and sustainable one, i.e. modifications do not leach out or off gas into the environment. This further adds to the sustainable footprint of such a product.
The first 150kg trial made at our production facility in Guben, Germany, from 100% advanced recycling resin obtained from post-consumer recycled PET packaging material (like PET bottles) was done back in autumn 2022. The filament yarns were extruded in a lab and then woven into a fabric by a partner for performance tests. The results were good, very promising and learnings from it allowed for a second, slightly more challenging trial.
For the second trial, 100% advanced recycled resins originated from mechanical recycled packaging material, which was no longer suitable further production of PET goods, was used. This not only added to the complexity but addressed yet another sustainability issue – reduce the waste from the food packaging industry. Though mechanical recycling allows one to reuse material, this can only be done for a certain number of times before the raw material “wears out”. Furthermore, for this trial lot, the production readiness on commercial batch lines was tested. This second 1,5mT trial lot showed improved results in the final FR fabric.
With the success of both trials in hand, Q4 2023 allows the planning of a third trial lot. Not only will staple fibers be made available for the first time, but also larger volumes will be ready for conversion.
The solution is advanced (molecular) recycling. This means not to go back to the very first “harvesting” steps, but smartly reusing what we already have.
Though the usage of advanced recycled material of “common” packaging material is a fantastic first step to obtain knowhow for using such materials, it cannot stop here. The ultimate answer can only be circularity – the usage of textiles as raw material. Now textiles will have, let us call them “impurities.” They can be blended with different raw materials, have laminations (for example upholstery fabrics), back coatings (for example black out curtains) or simply have dye stuffs. They also need to be collected and sorted and made readily available for reusage. Discarded years ago, and piling up in the most unusual places like the Atacama Desert, textiles need to be a resource, raw material. And we have to learn how to reuse them.
For the high-end FR modified polyester and the trademark tested fabrics made thereof, a Take-Back system for the entire textile value added chain in Europe has been set up years ago. Suitable for mechanical upcycling today, these textiles are collected at an industry partner and are the raw material for new high performance FR polyester material tomorrow. Thanks to the trademark testing scheme and a marker which has been added to the filaments and staple fibers during production, these used FR textiles – this raw material – can be identified and sorted. By learning more and more on advanced recycling, gearing up our skills and machines, circularity can be achieved. And must. Because circularity and the advanced recycling of products wherever possible will allow for the reduction of virgin material usage, no matter which raw material base.
Being “green” means to be holistically in our activities. And we, the entire textiles industry, must team up with and take all our consumers on this journey too. After a long use of the products wherever possible, these need to be returned to collection points, sorted, and made available for reuse. There is a price to pay, yet we earn much. The planet, the smiles of the next generation, the respect.
As a community we can work together to make it easier “being green,” dear Kermit.
