Textile Recycling Technologies, Colouring and Finishing Methods

Process
Input Fibre
Output
Non-Wovens
New Yarn
New Yarn
MECHANICAL
CHEMICAL

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Textile Recycling Technologies, Colouring and Finishing Methods | Le 
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Mechanical processes are categorized as a secondary recycling approach. Processes include: 
cutting of sorted fabrics for use as wiper rags, shredding and pulling of textile materials into fibres, 
re-bonding or respinning into new yarns or fabrics, melting and re-extruding, reblending (may 
include proportions of virgin material) or respinning to produce new yarns and threads, or 
textiles.
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Chemical processes are categorized as a tertiary recycling approach, and include 
processes in which the chemical structure of the material is either broken down partially or fully 
(depolymerization), followed by re-polymerization to virgin material, or through the dissolution 
and melting processes, from which the material is drawn or extruded into re-usable fibre.
5,8
 
Figure 5: Overview of possible post-industrial and post-consumer textile waste flows. 
Reproduced from [23].
For the diverse range of fibres produced globally, limited options for recycling are available for 
textiles and apparel. Figure 5 presents an overview of reuse, recycling, or waste options for textiles. 
While several technologies have been demonstrated, there are currently no full-scale end-of-life 
recycling systems within the value chain, largely due to the economic viability of scaling up 
processes, educational, technical, and infrastructural barriers.
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Most present-day recovery systems 
for post-consumer waste textiles mainly include reuse and mechanical downcycling processes. It 
has been cited that current technology can result in a 75% loss of value after the first cycle.
5
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Mechanical recycling processes for cotton and wool fibres are well established, but are low 
volume, and most recycled polyester fibres are derived from mechanically recycled PET bottles.
5
 
Chemical recycling of cellulosic fibres has been developed with ongoing advancements in 
technology towards scale-up, while the recycling of synthetics (nylons and polyesters) include 
some full-scale developments, but is limited to a few suppliers. Nevertheless, developments in 
demonstrated technologies are expected to be advanced in the coming decades.

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Textile Recycling Technologies, Colouring and Finishing Methods | Le 
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Requirements for a textile material recycling chain include stakeholders involved in the various 
processes along the chain from the organization of collection, sorting, and to subsequent reuse, 
recovery, or regeneration processes of materials.
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 Efficient recycling methods require technologies 
to separate and manage the various textile waste streams, which includes the characterization, 
identification and separation of constituent components (i.e. trims, buttons, zippers, threads), fibre 
blends, as well as dyes and chemicals from finishing treatments, from which final fibre quality is 
not diminished.
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 In addition, to become a viable option, future recycling technologies must be 
less polluting, more energy efficient, and less expensive than conventional processes for virgin 
material production. Additionally, a means to assist the scale-up and potential lifecycle impacts of 
demonstrated processes to commercialization is essential. Collaborative industry efforts from raw 
materials, design, collection, and recovery technologies are essential to realizing the 
environmental, economic, and social benefits from a textiles recycling chain. 

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Textile Recycling Technologies, Colouring and Finishing Methods | Le 
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