Scientists and researchers at Washington State University are working to develop new technology aimed at keeping millions of tonnes of cotton and cellulose waste out of landfills by spinning it into new fibres for clothing.
With support from the MJ Murdock Charitable Trust, the ‘Environmentally Friendly Cotton/Cellulose Waste Recycling’ project is designed to help close the loop by turning waste into high-quality products in an environmentally friendly way.
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Partnering with Ting Chi, associate professor in apparel, merchandising, design and textiles, and Jinwen Zhang, professor in the School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, the project has received US$120,000 in funding – $60,000 from the MJ Murdock Charitable Trust and $60,000 from the Washington State University Office of Commercialization.
The grants will allow the team to set up a large, laboratory-scale device, called a wet spinning machine, which produces new fibres from cotton waste textiles. Hang Liu, assistant professor in WSU’s department of apparel, merchandising, design and textiles will use it to make fabric samples with commercial potential, helping the fabric industry learn how to use and develop regenerated fibre products.
“More than 13m tonnes of textiles go to waste every year in the United States,” says Liu. “In Washington’s King County alone, 40,000 tonnes of textile waste that ended up in landfills in 2015.
“The textile industry is eager to put that waste back into use. Manufacturers are actively seeking sustainable practices that keep materials in use as long as possible, and find new value for them once they’ve been used.”
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By GlobalDataFibre consumption is on the rise as a growing world population demands textiles for clothing, homes and industries. At the same time, the recycling rate of textile waste is extremely low: less than 1% of clothing gets recycled into fibres for new clothing, representing a loss of more than $100bn worth of materials each year, according to the University.
“Given the tremendous amount of cotton waste available for free or at a very low cost, that savings is of big interest to the industry,” Liu adds. “My project is an important milestone that could strengthen industry collaboration and show the commercial and environmental value of regenerating waste fibres.”
