Production of recycled cotton yarns: an ecological and ethical vision
Among the most used fibers in the world for textiles in general (clothes, household linen, work clothes, etc..) there is certainly cotton. Like every agricultural crop, cotton is therefore cultivated in the fields: therefore, the greater is the quantity of material diverted from the waste stream during the textile manufacturing process that can be processed and recovered as recycled material, the greater is the part of the soil that can be used to cultivate food, necessary to feed a population growth that is not expected to slow down for at least the next fifty years, the greater is the preservation of water and the conservation of soil through a reduced use of chemicals.
ETHICAL
ENVIRONMENT
TEXTILE WASTE
The production of recycled cotton is possible!
On the basis of our experience, the production of open-end recycled cotton yarns allows to recover an average of about 60% of the fibers and the waste resulting from our production can be used in up- cycling processes: think, for example, that from our by-product, it is possible to produce completely biodegradable soundproofing panels with technical characteristics comparable to those produced with materials whose only possibility of recycling is the incineration (melamine, polyurethanes).
Recycled cotton means reduced emissions
Choosing recycled cotton means making an ethical and ecological choice: compared to systems for the regeneration of plastic fibers in polymers, the installation of plants to transform reclaimed material back into raw material as recycled cotton, is not normally subject to particular barriers to entry, such as dimensional constraints (minimum sizes of implants) and it is therefore possible to encourage the reuse of the waste right where it is produced reducing emissions related to the transportation of materials, thus respecting the balance of the planet in which we live and also significantly reducing the use of primary resources.
Recycled cotton means that a trade-off is possible
As already mentioned, the production of yarns with recycled cotton can have technical limitations of count (short fibers), strength (mistreated fibers) and dyeability (dead fibers), but depending on the intended use you can find a compromise by mixing with virgin fibers, up to a maximum of 80%, to be able to design a recycled yarn with the requirements of the customer. Some fashion brands, such as Levi's, use about 20% recycled cotton to make their garments without compromising on quality.
