TexKreis - Recycling process for returning plastic-based textile products to the material cycle

In 2022, 113.8 million tons of textile fibres, including 87.6 million tons of chemical fibres, were produced worldwide according to the Federal Statistical Office. These quantities pose major challenges for the fashion industry in particular, as textiles have been difficult to recycle so far. In view of the increasing production of clothing, particularly through fast fashion, and the associated resource consumption and waste volumes in recent years, it is therefore crucial to find sustainable solutions to meet the growing environmental requirements and stricter legal regulations in various industries. One promising sustainable solution is mechanical recycling, as it enables large quantities of input materials to be processed with minimal logistical effort. Existing challenges include, in particular, the limited technological possibilities and the often inadequate quality of the resulting recyclates.

In order to innovate this recycling process, the TexKreis project is particularly concerned with the preparation and extrusion processes, so that high-quality and ecologically sustainable plastic recyclates can be produced from textile and textile composites, which have application-specific optimized properties. In the course of this, thermoplastic textile waste from polyurethane/polyester (TPU/PES) mixed fabrics and unmixed polyamide (PA) and PES fabrics will be examined in particular, for which a suitable, economically viable extrusion technology is to be developed. Further objectives are the development of an effective recycling approach that can be transferred to other input streams for textile material composites and the standard-compliant characterization of the developed plastic recyclates for a subsequent rapid market launch. The project also aims to achieve further objectives, such as the establishment of cross-company and cross-industry cooperation and the development of a business model for high-quality cross-industry textile recycling. 

Contact
Sahra Pogrzeba, M.Sc.
pogrzeba@ikk.uni-hannover.de
+49 511 764 13172