https://archive.md/aasCA
"Polyester is the refined sugar of our wardrobes: It’s cheap, has an iffy
reputation and is in almost everything, from stretchy leggings to $4,000
jackets. An estimated 34 million tons of it went into apparel in 2021,
according to Textile Exchange, a nonprofit focused on climate change and the
fashion and textile industries. That makes it the most-used material in
clothing.
The petroleum-derived synthetic may also be the ultimate recyclable fiber.
Though very little polyester clothing currently gets recycled, the fiber is “a
fantastic reversible polymer,” said Josse Kunst, a chemical engineer and the
chief commercial officer at CuRe Technology, a Dutch polyester-rejuvenation
startup. Meaning: Old polyester can become as good as new.
Through chemical recycling, old polyester textiles can be broken down on a
molecular level, cleansed of contaminants like dyes and waterproof coatings,
rebuilt into polyester pellets and respun. The resulting clear yarn is
indistinguishable from virgin polyester, said Kunst. Other materials such as
cotton lose some of their essential properties in the chemical-recycling
process.
A collection of startups in the U.S. and Europe want to capitalize on
polyester’s knack for bouncing back. Specialists in chemically recycling
polyester or poly-cotton-blended textiles, they’ve proven their work in labs
and pilot plants over the past five-plus years.
“The technology is there,” Kunst said.
There’s investment too. Some startups have recently raised amounts ranging from
$27 million to just over $60 million, backed by powerful players such as Zara
owner Inditex and Bill Gates’s Breakthrough Energy Ventures. Together they’re
working to help solve a question that has confounded the fashion industry for
the past decade: Why can’t we use our mountains of would-be landfill, rather
than fossil fuels and other virgin resources, to make new clothes?"
Via
What Could Go Right? September 21, 2023:
<
https://theprogressnetwork.org/gen-z-wellbeing-mental-health-optimism-future/>
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
