A new circular economy concept

from textile waste towards

chemical and textile industries feedstock

dr. Mojca Poberžnik,

IOS, Ltd.. Slovenia

GZS, Ljubljana, 3rd July 2018

Co-coordinator & Technical Manager:

Prof. dr. Aleksandra Lobnik, UMARI, IOS, Ltd.. Slovenia

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Recovered

Textile Waste

100%

Re-Wear

60%

Re-Use/

Re-Cycle

40%

well preserved

10%

moderate

wearability

50%

wipers

15%

fibre-pulling

14%

other recycling

& re-use 8%

waste 3%

Sales in over 90

countries globally

For utilization in the

industry

Incineration

Material Reutilisation

▪ 75 mio. tons of textile are used/produced worldwide▪ a few % of the overall textile waste (low-valued) flow is recycled▪ currently 60 mio. tons/year of textiles - sent to landfills or burned

Introduction

❑ Protecting the environment & raising social awareness and responsibility →introduction of the circular economy concept is an important decision at the EU level

❑ Project goal is to create the circular economy concept →symbiosis between the textile and chemical industry

Project vision A new value chain in the circular economy concept

❑ Aim: usage of the innovative recycling concept for production of secondary raw materials for the chemical industry

❑ Textile waste becomes a source for the textile and chemical industries

CONSUMER

CHEMICAL PRODUCTS RESYNTEX –

CIRCULAR ECONOMY CONCEPT

SECONDARY RAW

MATERIALS

COLLECT.of TEXTILE

WASTE

SORTING of TEXTILE

WASTE

Process input

❑ Waste textiles - raw material of low value for recycling in existing recycling processes

(disposal, incineration without energy recovery).

❑ New concept - processing of raw textile wastes and mixtures (Protein, CELL, PET in PA fibres) into secondary raw materials for the chemical industry.

❑ 95% of the weight of waste textiles

Landfill

Thermal treatment

Recycling

Reuse

Text

ile q

ual

ity

Was

te =

Op

po

rtu

nit

yW

aste

= C

ost

s

Process outcomes

❑ Secondary raw materials for the chemical industry

PROTEIN extraction

• Fillers, adhesivesfor wooden pannels

CELLULOSE extraction and

glucose production

• Glucose

• Bio-ethanol

PET

depolymerization

• Terephthalic acid

• Ethylene glycol

PA

depolymerization

• Monomers

Organization of project work - Consortium

❑20 partners from 10 EU countries,

3 from Slovenia

❑All segments of newly established

value chain:

▪ waste collectors;

▪ end-users of secondary raw

materials;

▪ academic, expert and consulting

organizations;

▪ stakeholders at the highest EU level.

Organization of project work

Considering and demonstrating the whole value chain starting from :

1. Preparation of strategies and scenarios for the economically successful synergy of the textile and

chemical industries,

2. Renovation of the concepts of collecting textile waste (improving public awareness),

3. Improving the sorting and pre-treatment of textile waste,

4. Development and optimization of the chemical and biotechnological transformation process of

natural and synthetic textile fibres into intermediates of raw materials for the chemical industry as

well as handling of liquid and solid residues of the process,

5. Development of industrial applications using raw materials from textile waste,

6. Process planning and techno-economic analysis,

7. Demonstration of a comprehensive concept at industrial scale,

8. Environmental and economic assessment of scenarios and verification of the business model,

9. Exploitation, dissemination, communication, standardization and training.

CHEMICAL AND ENZYMATIC PROCESSES

Recycling processes: mechanical, enzymatic, chemical

AUTOMATIC SORTING

of material

❖ DECONTAMINATION

❖ CUTTING / GRINDING

Conversion of synthetic polymers into monomers and

oligomers

Conversion of natural polymers into value

added products

Raw materials for industry

Manufacture of new polymers or

chemicals

Cleaning and sorting of material

Decolouration, Rinsing

Biocehemical and Chemical degradation

PET monomers

PA oligomers

Protein hydrolysate

Glucose solution

Fiber:

❖ Protein

❖ Cellulose

❖ PA

❖ PET

New PET

Recycling processes: mechanical, enzymatic, chemical

New polymers or high-value added

chemicals

Binders for wooden panels

Bioethanol

Material pretreatment

Two-screw extruder Material after extrusion

Decolourization

PET (sCO2)

PA

PA

CELL

PET

DENIM

Proces demonstration – pilot plants

Pilot plant (30 t/year) for cellulose and protein fibres, installed in France

Protein fibers

Solubilizedprotein fibers

Precipitatingprotein fibers

Precipitatedproteins

Cellulosic fibres

Bioreactors for enzymatic degradation

Without pre-decolourization

Pre-decolourizedwasteTextile waste - Cellulose

Cellulosic fibers

PET fibers

PET waste

TA monomer

Waste streams - Liquid

Membrane filtrationplant

AOP pilot plant

Initial Initialfrompilot plant

P – after30 min

P – after 15 min

C – after15 min C – after

30 min

Waste streams - Solids

Benefits from RESYNTEX:

▪ Non-wearable textile waste can become a valuable

source for new chemical feedstock

▪ Reducing environmental impact

▪ Improve collection approaches & increase public awareness &

improve social involvement with the issue of textile waste

▪ Improving standards for efficient industrial symbioses with new

buisness models in circular economy

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Benefits from RESYNTEX:

▪ It integrates various stakeholders into circular

economy

▪ demonstration of an ambitious theoretic concept in

reality (30 t/y pilot plant)

▪ Uses innovative recycling & industrial symbiosis

▪ Complete value chains from textile wastes & chemical

feedstocks

▪ Global benefits beyond EU

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info@resyntex.eu

www.resyntex.eu@RESYNTEX21

Acknowledge

RESYNTEX project received funding from the EuropeanUnion’s Horizon 2020 research and innovationprogramme under grant agreement 641942.