Researchers at the University of Amsterdam (UvA), collaborating with Avantium, have introduced a new method for recycling polycotton textile waste.
This innovative process, recently published in Nature Communications, effectively addresses the challenges associated with textile waste management. The method starts by using superconcentrated hydrochloric acid at room temperature to remove cotton fibers from blended fabrics.
Once the cotton is extracted, it is converted into glucose, a valuable feedstock for creating biobased products, including renewable plastics. The remaining polyester fibers can be reprocessed with existing polyester recycling techniques.
The research was spearheaded by Prof. Gert-Jan Gruter, who leads UvA’s Industrial Sustainable Chemistry group as a part-time professor and serves as Chief Technology Officer at Avantium.
Gruter emphasized the importance of recovering glucose from textile waste, describing it as a crucial contribution to transitioning from fossil-based economies to renewable, biobased systems.
Currently, glucose is primarily sourced from food crops like corn and wheat. As industries look to large-scale biobased plastic production, the demand for non-food glucose is expected to rise.
Nienke Leenders, a PhD student of Gruter and the paper’s first author, conducted tests through the four-year MiWaTex project, supported by the Dutch Research Council (NWO).
Leenders tested actual post-consumer polycotton waste, achieving complete hydrolysis of cotton cellulose into glucose under industrial conditions. The polyester component of the fabric remained intact and easily separable.
The results demonstrated high glucose yields, indicating both the scalability and cost-effectiveness of this recycling method. The glucose derived from cotton could be applied in various industrial settings.
Looking ahead, Gruter expressed optimism about advancing this technology for commercialization, potentially positioning them as pioneers in producing non-food glucose through a biorefinery approach.
