ECO Fibres and Eco Friendly Textiles Final Text

8/11/2019 ECO Fibres and Eco Friendly Textiles Final Text

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ECO-FIBRES AND ECO-FRIENDLY TEXTILES

R.B. Chavan,

ABSTRACT

One of the themes which is dominating the present decade is the Environmentalissues: Technology options for textile industry. The present article briefly discusses thedevelopment of few eco-fibres. One of the eco-friendly regenerated cellulosic fibreswhich is becoming popular particularly in ladies fashion wear is yocell! obtained byregeneration of cellulose using eco-friendly solvent "-methyl morpholine oxide. #n thecategory of eco-fibres mention must also be made of synthetic polyester fibre based onpolymeri$ation of lactic acid obtained from corn as a renewable source. %mong thenatural fibres! organic cotton obtained by cultivation of cotton without the use offertili$ers and pesticides is gaining popularity. Those who are deeply concerned about the

pollution and health ha$ard problems associated with synthetic dyes are propagating theuse of naturally coloured cotton.#n addition to eco-fibres! presently ma&or emphasis is given to eco-friendly productiontechnologies where the concept of cradle to grave or womb to tomb is followed. 'ariouscountries are propagating the use of eco-labels for identification of environment friendlytextiles. The present paper critically discusses the environment friendly technologyoptions available for textile industry.

1. ORGANIC COTTONThe cotton fbre, in its pure orm, and also in blends, is the

principal clothing fbre o the world, accounting or about 50% o total

world fbre production. (otton cultivated without the use of synthetic fertili$ers!pesticides and all other plant chemicals is )nown as organic cotton. To determine theenvironmental impact connected to a product! it is necessary to do the ife (ycle%nalysis *(%+! with a ,cradle- to-grave approach. The first step of this concept includesagricultural activities. rom this point of view the conventional cotton is not eco-friendlyin the true sense because of the use of ha$ardous chemicals in the form of fertili$ers!pesticides and other plant chemicals used during the cultivation.Therefore! though cottonis natural fibre! beneath it lays a long chain of chemicallyintensive."unnatural"processes. To bring this delicate plant to harvest! it is heavilysprayed - / to 01 times a season in extreme cases - with pesticides so poisonous theygradually render fields barren! and pose a serious threat to the human! plant and a2ualtic

life. #t is &ust the beginning. Once the cotton is grown! ginned and manufactured! thetextile processing necessary for aesthetics and desirable properties! re2uires the use ofnumerous environmentally dangerous materials.At least 8,000 chemicals are used to turnraw material into final product. many of which are toxic and classified by the World HealthOrganisation (WHO as moderately ha!ardous to extremely ha!ardous.

1.1.PESTICIDES1.1.1 Fat! an F#$ur%!

Total cotton cultivation area in more than 31 countries is /1 million hecatres.


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Of all pesticides used globally each year! pesticides used in cotton aloneranges upto 456.

Total pesticide consumption in third world countries accounts for about 711million )ilograms. Out of which 051 million )ilograms is consumed in cottoncrop.

"umber of pesticides presently on the mar)et: 811 9esticide-related illnesses among farm wor)ers in .;.%. each year:

%pproximately 711!111. "umber of people in the .;. who die each year from cancer related to pesticides:

01!811. %n estimated 45 million people worldwide are poisoned by pesticides every year!

which translates to 8/ per minute. The list of tragic accidents involving chemicals used on cotton! however! is

lengthy. The 0eveloping countries are the fastest growing pesticide mar)ets! where health and

environmental regulations are extremely limited! and a great deal of thepoisonings ta)e place.

1.2 Organic pest control

Organic farmers around the world are showing that there is no need to rely ondangerous chemicals. =lac) ants )eep caterpillars and other pests under control inganda. #n other countries! mixtures of natural soap! chilli and extracts from local treesare used to repel pests. 9est! weed and disease control is achieved through crop rotation.(rop rotation is at the core of organic farming! providing nutrients to the soil! helpingprevent pest! weed and disease problems and maintaining the soil fertility.

1.& '() *ar+%r! %n%*#t *r(+ (r$an# (tt(n?esearch by the 9esticide %ction "etwor) in sub-;aharan %frica *=enin! ;enegal!

Tan$ania! ganda and @imbabwe+ found that most farmers reported less illness duringthe rainy season after switching to organic cotton growing. ield observations confirmthat organic cotton fields have significantly higher numbers of insect species thanconventional ones! especially those that are beneficial.

armers growing cotton organically are able to reduce their overhead costs andthe li)elihood of getting into debt. They tend to grow on a smaller scale thanconventional cotton growers and do not use expensive harvesting machines or large2uantities of chemical inputs. This results in improved soil fertility and a higher 2uality ofcotton being produced and pic)ed. ;ome farmers are reporting higher incomes as a resultof farming organically.

1. Or$an# (tt(n r(ut#(n


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There is a growing demand for organic cotton in various parts of the world. The organiccotton production in different countries is shown in the following table

1.

Tal% 1 /(rl Or$an# C(tt(n Pr(ut#(n 100-1002 3#n t(n!4

C(untr5 100 100& 100 1006 1007 1002

%rgentina 4 041 043 074 A1

%ustralia 8A< 511 A51 811 511 811

=enin 5

=ra$il 4 < 0 5 5

Egypt 7/ 080 5


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TOT% 7!81/ 3!410

100 100& 100 1006 1007 1002

Source: Agricola Partners, Pesticides Trust

1.6 Pr(%!! (* C%rt#*#at#(n% person see)ing organic certification has to submit an organic farm plan to a ;>%accredited private or state certification programme. The plan must contain all theinformation about the current growing or handling methods and materials used. The planmust also cover future intensions and improvements to all areas of production. Coreoverthe plan must show that harvesting practices will not be destructive to the environment orto the future productivity of the crop. The ;>% further re2uires the records of allmanagement practices and materials used in organic production must be )ept for five

years. (rop can only be labeled as certified when it is grown on land! which has been freeof prohibited substances for three years prior to harvest. (rops grown on land intransition to organic *during the first three years after switching from conventionalfarming+ cannot be labeled as organic.

1.7 Th% +ar8%t *(r (r$an# t%9t#l%! Over the last five years the ; and (anada has experienced a 44 per cent increase

in organic textiles sales Over the next five years the ; predicts a 88 per cent growth in organic clothing

sales! with baby products to be the next ma&or growth area. Over the last five years expenditure on organic cotton textile products has

increased by 31 per cent in Europe. Over the last two years! sales of organic and environmentally-friendly textile

products have increased by 41 per cent in the ..

. NAT:RALLY COLO:RED COTTONThe cotton that grows with natural colours during cultivation is )nown as

naturally coloured cotton i.e. the colour is obtained without the use of natural or syntheticdyes. The naturally coloured cottons are )nown over 5111 years but because of theavailability of inexpensive synthetic dyes in numerous colours and also the need forhigher outputs in spinning! weaving! naturally coloured cotton went out of cultivation.The present wave for environment protection has given impetus to the cultivation of

naturally coloured cottons in various shades li)e green! brown! tan! yellow! pin) etc. Outof these! green and brown varieties are most common and cultivated in countries li)e;%! #srael! (hina! ?ussia! 9eru! Cexico %ustralia and #ndia.

The basic reasons why naturally coloured cotton could not thrive in thecommercially competitive mar)ets were problems related to low fibre length andfineness! very poor spinnability! non avilability in desired colours! poor colour fastness towashing! rubbing! perspiration! light! bleaching agents etc. The yield per acre is low


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along with other problems such as availability of seeds. Fowever on envrinmentalconsiderations! presently attempts are being made to revive the cultivation of naturallycoloured cotton for the production of eco friendly textiles without the use of toxicsynthetic dyes and chemicals.

Earlier due to its low strength and poor spinnability naturally coloured cotton was

used for the production of yarns upto 01s and 04s count suitable for home textiles andcoarser outer wears. Fowever! the research in the last 05 years in cotton breeding has ledto improvement in yield! fibre fineness! length and strength and also the intensity ofcolours. such cottons are suitable for spinning yarns upto 71s and 81s counts which canbe used for )nitting and weaving of both men and ladies outer and inner garments.

2.1 cultivation of coloured cotton

There are many countries where naturally coloured cotton is cultivated. The mostimportant are 9eru! ;%! %ustralia and #ndia.The production of naturally colured cotton in some of the countries is given in table 4

Tal% Pr(ut#(n (* naturall5 (l(ur% (tt(n

(untr5 r(ut#(n 3t(n!4 ar%a 3ha4

Au!tral#a ;;; 7;;

I!ra%l 6;; &;;

P%ru ;; 27

:SA 6;; 2;

In#a n( auth%nt# *#$ur%!

. P%ru9eru constitute by far the largest producers of naturally cloured cotton. % 9eruvian

"BO! ;ociedad de #nvestigaciGn de la (iencia! (ultura y %rte "orteHo *;#(%"+! iswor)ing for the revival! conservation and use of native coloured cottons as a ruraldevelopment strategy to support indigenous farmers and traditional artisans. The "ative(otton 9ro&ect! sponsored by ;#(%" since 0


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;ix principal varieties yielding cotton of cream! tan! medium brown! reddishbrown! chocolate brown and mauve colours are cultivated. %ll bolls are hand pic)ed.Cuch of the lint is destined for craft production and domestic consumption within therural villages where it is harvested! but a significant 2uantity in the form of finishedproducts is circulated in popular urban mar)ets.

The naturally coloured products are mar)eted internationally by the company"aturetex under the trade names Pakucho, Morrope, Native Cotton and Vicuna Cotton.The products are certified by the >utch foundation! ;%,owner of the prestigious EO2uality symbol.

.& Au!tral#a

Ieff J Carilyn =idstrup! a couple with a bac)ground of agriculture! pioneered %ustraliancoloured cotton. #n partnership with other farmers ! they became %ustralias firstcommercial producers of naturally coloured cotton. The commercial crop was grownover an area of approximately 4111 acres. The colour range is centralised around greenand brown. =lending these colours with each other and with white provides a wideselection of options. (olour retention and fastness has been found to be comparable withaccepted apparel standards

. :SA

#n ;% naturally colored cotton reappeared as a fashion item in the early 0


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the production and productivity of cotton. #n 0


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F#$. 1 Fr(+ T#+%r t( Ch%+#al ul

&.& D#!!(lut#(n (* )(( ul an *#r% r%$%n%rat#(nThe wood pulp containing 9 of A51. The starting point of the

process is suspension of approximately 076 cellulose! 416 water and 3A6 "CCO. Thedissolution of cellulose in "CCO is done at 0411( with high speed stirring! resulting in

highly viscous solution. The viscous solution is filtered and then extruded into ana2ueous spinning bath through spinnerets where the cellulose is precipitated in the formof fibres. %s the solvent is washed out! the fibre in the form of fine filaments are collectedas tow! from which the staple fibre is produced. The regeneration and the washing bathscontaining "CCO are collected separately. The "CCO is concentrated by evaporationof water and recycled. The solvent recovery is


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&..1 S(lv%nt#n the production process for yocell! "-methyl morpholine-"-oxide is used as thesolvent. This substance belongs to the amine oxide group which has been used for sometime as an active washing component in body care productsM its applications in celluloseproduction is new. "umerous tests have passed this material as safe from a

dermatological and toxicological point of view.&.. T(9#(l($#al a!%t


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&.6 L5(%ll *#%r harat%r#!t#!yocell is an exceptionally strong fiber. #n a dry state! it is significantly stronger thanother cellulosics! including cotton! and approximates the strength of polyester. #n a wetstate! yocell retains /56 of its dry strength and is the only man-made cellulosic toexceed the strength of cotton in a wet state. %gain! its dry and wet tenacity translates into

exceptionally strong yarns and fabrics. yocell has a very high modulus! which meanslow shrin)age in water. Thus! fabrics and garments made from yocell demonstrate verygood stability when washed.

Tal% & C(+ar#!(n (* *#r% r(%rt#%!

PROPERTY LYOCELL >ISCOSE '/? COTTON@ POLYESTER

denier 0.5 0.5 0.5 -- 0.5

tenacity*gQden+ 8./ - 5.1 4.3 - 7.08.0 -8.7

4.8 - 4.< 8./ - 3.1

elongation *6+ 08 - 03 41 - 45 07 - 05 A - < 88 - 85

wet tenacity*gQden+

8.4 - 8.3 0.4 - 0./4.7 -4.5

7.0 - 7.3 8./ - 3.1

wet elongation*6+

03 - 0/ 45 - 71 07 - 05 04 - 08 88 - 85

waterimbibition *6+

35


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the synthetic fibres produced to day are non-biodegradable. %ttempts are therefore beingmade to find renewable sources as a raw material for textile production to ta)e care ofdepleting fossil fuel resources and synthesi$e biodegradable polymers for environmentprotection. One of the biodegradable synthetic fibres based on poly lactic acid ismanufactured by using renewable source corn as raw material.

.1 P(l5lat# a# *#r%!

#n 0


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..7 ?(#*#at#(n t( u!t(+%r n%%!

% wide range of products that vary in molecular weight and crystallinity can beproduced for wide range of applications.

.& ?ar8%t O(rtun#t#%!

9% currently finds demand in three mar)et areas: fibers! pac)aging! andchemical products. 9% fibers combine the comfort and feel of natural fibers with theperformance of synthetics. The fibre properties are summari$ed in Table 7

Tal% Su++ar5 (* F#%r Pr(%rt#%!

"ibers

#roperty

$ylon % #&' Acrylics #A )ayon *otton +il Wool

+pecific

gra-ity

./ .1 .8 .23 .32 .32 ./ .

'enacity

(g4d

3.3 %.0 /.0 %.0 2.3 /.0 /.0 .%

5oisture

regain (6

/. 0.27

0./

.072.0 0./70.% .3 0 /78

&lastic

reco-ery

(36 strain

81 %3 30 1 2 32 32 %1

"lammability 5edium High

smo

e

5edium ow

smoe

9urns 9urns 9urns 9urns

slowly


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:;

resistance

#oor "air &xcellent &xcellent #oor "air7

poor

"air7

poor

"air

Wicing (7W

slope< higher

slope, more

wicing

= 0.7

0.8

(no

finis

h

= %.7.3

(no

finish

172%

(with

finish

= =

"OTE: gQdRgrams per denierM -NRucas-Nashburn E2uationsM9ETRpoly*ethyleneterphalate+

The uni2ue property spectrum of 9% fibers allows the creation of productswith superior hand and touch! drape! comfort! moisture management! ultraviolet *'+resistance! and resilience. (ombining these performance features with the features of

natural fibers enables 9% to be used in a wide spectrum of products includingapparel! carpet! nonwoven fiberfill! and household and industrial mar)ets

. E+%r$#n$ al#at#(n!(argill dow is also exploring and developing emerging applications such as:

Bl() +(l#n$ in&ection stretch blow molded bottles.

E+ul!#(n!water based emulsions for paper and board coatings and! paints! binders fornon- woven fabrics! binders for building products and adhesives.

Lat# a# %r#vat#v%! To be used as chemical intermediates in products such as

solvents! hot melt adhesives! coatings! surfactants! acrylic esters and agriculturalintermediates.

.6 Env#r(n+%ntal %n%*#t! an #!(!al (t#(n!

.6.1 R%u% *(!!#l *u%l u!%(onventional hydrocarbon polymers utili$e natural reserves of oil and natural gas

as their feedstoc) source. #n contrast the monomer for 9% is derived from annuallyrenewable resource. Energy from the sun and carbon dioxide from air are harnessed inagricultural crops. *igure 4+ One third of the energy re2uirement of 9% is derived theserenewable resources.! resulting in 9% utili$ing 41-816 less fossil fuel than otherpolymers derived directly from hydrocarbons.


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F#$. C5l% (*Latr(n 3PLA4

.6. Car(n 5l%(arbon dioxide is believed to be a ma&or contributor to global warming. =ecause carbondioxide is removed from the air when corn is grown! the use of 9% has the potential toresult in a reduced impact on global warming compared to most hydrocarbon basedpolymers *fig.4+

.7 B#(%$raa#l#t5 (* PLA

#t was observed that when the 9% fibre is sub&ected to ground burrying! marinewater and activated mud tests! there was decrease in tenacity and increase in weight loss.#n the ground test the fibre is practically decomposed within two years. The observationis similar for the test of immersion in marine water. #t is decomposed much 2uic)ly in

activated mud. The degradation is almost complete in 4-7 months time *ig.7+

F#$.&B#(%$raa#l#t5 (*Latr(n 3PLA4


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The behaviour of 9% in comparison with other traditional fibres is:

The conventional polyester *9ET+ retains the shape and properties under allbiodegradability tests.

The cellulosic fibres *cotton and rayon+ are decomposed more rapidly than 9% inactived mud.

.2 /a!t% #!(!al%t the end of their useful life! 9% products can be disposed of by all traditional

waste management methods. #n addition 9% products can be composted in municipalcomposting facilities.

. In#n%rat#(n

9% polymers incinerate cleanly and with reduced energy yield */!811 =TQlb+compared to traditional polymers. 9% polymers burn much li)e paper! cellulose and

carbohydrates. #t contains no aromatic groups or chlorine! burns with white flame!produces few byproducts and 1.106 ash.

.0 P(!t (n!u+%r r%5l#n$

#n practice the following conditions need to be met in order to recycle anymaterial:0. The material is present in sufficient 2uantities in waste stream.4. % disciplined collection system is put into place to collect.7. The product is clearly mar)ed and physically easy to separate.8. There are outlets desiring to purchase the recycle feedstoc) stream.

=ecause 9% polymers hydroly$e with water to generate lactic acid! it would be

straightforward to completely degrade 9% into lactic acid and recover monomer.C(nlu!#(n

0. The cultivation of conventional cotton is not eco friendly. The use of syntheticfertili$ers! pesticides and various plant chemicals pose serious environmentalproblems including health ha$ards. %ll these environmental and health ha$ardscan be ta)en care of by the cultivation of organic cotton. The activities related toorganic cotton cultivation are increasing in cotton growing countries world wide

4. urther chemical processing of naturally coloured cotton is not essential. Thus theenvironment pollution due to chemical processing is eliminated.

7. yocell can be considered to be more environment friendly because the plant

chemicals used for wood plantation put less burden on environment compared toconventional cotton.8. The new ecofriendly synthetic fibre based on polylactide *9%4! synthesi$ed from

corn as a renewable source would find wide acceptability in the area ofconventional textiles! technical textiles and non-textile applications. #t would meetthe re2uirements to cope up with the depleting fossil fuel resources andenvironment protection. #t is envisaged that in the near future! many companieswould enter into production of 9% fibres.


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ECO Fibres and Eco Friendly Textiles Final Text

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