Thu, 16 May 2024 03:58:29 +1000
Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>
<https://grist.org/looking-forward/apple-waste-spider-silk-enhanced-cotton-how-bio-based-textiles-could-replace-plastic-in-our-clothing/>
"If you’ve read any climate-related news in the past several years, you’re
probably familiar with the scourge of microplastics. These tiny bits of plastic
end up clogging oceans. They show up at alarming rates in bottled water, food,
clouds — and in the human body. A study published just last month in the
journal Toxicological Sciences tested 62 placentas, and found microplastics,
in varying concentrations, in every single one. While their long-term impacts
on human health are still largely unknown, another study published earlier this
month linked microplastics in arteries with increased risk of heart attacks and
stroke.
A lot of attention has focused on phasing out single-use plastics, which create
visible plastic pollution and release microplastics when they break down. But
there’s growing recognition that plastics, and microplastics, are hidden in a
staggering number of products we depend on — including, notably, our clothing.
The bits of plastic shed from synthetic textiles have their own term:
microfibers. Scraps of polyester, nylon, elastane, and other synthetic fabrics
slough off of our clothes in the course of wearing, storing, and washing them.
Laundry alone may account for about a third of the microplastics released into
the ocean each year — and some innovations and regulations have emerged to
reduce the transfer of microplastics from our washing machines to our water
systems. But another set of innovators are imagining something bigger: what our
clothes could be made of instead.
The problem, of course, is that plastics are so darn functional. Synthetic
fibers are typically cheaper to produce than organic materials, and they also
offer performance benefits, like stretchiness and weatherproofing.
“The age of plastic began because it mimicked other things, and the
functionality was so good that it became its own thing,” fashion designer Uyen
Tran told Grist, when we interviewed her for our 2023 Grist 50 list. In
2020, Tran founded a company called TômTex to create bio-based materials that
can replace synthetic fabrics as well as leather and suede. She believes that a
wave of new materials is ready to outcompete plastic-based textiles. “I think
biomaterial is on the edge of becoming its own thing as well. Just give us a
few more years, and you will see.”
In this newsletter, we’re rounding up a handful of the materials — from apple
waste to artificial spider silk — that are already on the market, offering a
glimpse of a plastic-free future for our textiles."
Via Reasons to be Cheerful:
<https://reasonstobecheerful.world/what-were-reading-invasive-fish-smart-densification/>
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
"If you’ve read any climate-related news in the past several years, you’re
probably familiar with the scourge of microplastics. These tiny bits of plastic
end up clogging oceans. They show up at alarming rates in bottled water, food,
clouds — and in the human body. A study published just last month in the
journal Toxicological Sciences tested 62 placentas, and found microplastics,
in varying concentrations, in every single one. While their long-term impacts
on human health are still largely unknown, another study published earlier this
month linked microplastics in arteries with increased risk of heart attacks and
stroke.
A lot of attention has focused on phasing out single-use plastics, which create
visible plastic pollution and release microplastics when they break down. But
there’s growing recognition that plastics, and microplastics, are hidden in a
staggering number of products we depend on — including, notably, our clothing.
The bits of plastic shed from synthetic textiles have their own term:
microfibers. Scraps of polyester, nylon, elastane, and other synthetic fabrics
slough off of our clothes in the course of wearing, storing, and washing them.
Laundry alone may account for about a third of the microplastics released into
the ocean each year — and some innovations and regulations have emerged to
reduce the transfer of microplastics from our washing machines to our water
systems. But another set of innovators are imagining something bigger: what our
clothes could be made of instead.
The problem, of course, is that plastics are so darn functional. Synthetic
fibers are typically cheaper to produce than organic materials, and they also
offer performance benefits, like stretchiness and weatherproofing.
“The age of plastic began because it mimicked other things, and the
functionality was so good that it became its own thing,” fashion designer Uyen
Tran told Grist, when we interviewed her for our 2023 Grist 50 list. In
2020, Tran founded a company called TômTex to create bio-based materials that
can replace synthetic fabrics as well as leather and suede. She believes that a
wave of new materials is ready to outcompete plastic-based textiles. “I think
biomaterial is on the edge of becoming its own thing as well. Just give us a
few more years, and you will see.”
In this newsletter, we’re rounding up a handful of the materials — from apple
waste to artificial spider silk — that are already on the market, offering a
glimpse of a plastic-free future for our textiles."
Via Reasons to be Cheerful:
<https://reasonstobecheerful.world/what-were-reading-invasive-fish-smart-densification/>
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
