Research

A patent-pending ‘Fibre Shredder’ from a University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) faculty can recyle used textiles back into fibre in a minute-and-a-half.

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has developed a pioneering award-winning intelligent, electrically-activated sportswear with a nature-inspired active perspiration function.

Research at the Universities of Bristol and Bath has led to the creation of low-power interactive, digital clothing which senses and captures movements much more accurately than is possible using current phones and smart watches, while preserving the pervasive processes and systems used for manufacturing of everyday garments.

Culminating more than a decade of research, researchers in the US have come up with a new cotton quality module that works with GOSSYM, a computer application that simulates the processes affecting cotton plant growth and yield.

A prototype DIY weaving machine that fits on your desk, costs a few hundred dollars, and dissolvable textile fibres made of materials like gelatin, yet another byproduct of the meat industry. Designers could have a field day spinning similar fibres from other natural ingredients.

Thailand’s Mahidol University has come up with a leather substitute made from pineapple leaf fibre (PALF) and natural rubber (NR) with claims that it is bio-based, plastic-free and a lower carbon footprint, making it an attractive option for industries seeking sustainable materials.

Researchers in the US have developed a sound-suppressing silk fabric, barely thicker than a human hair, that uses fabric vibrations to suppress sound in larger areas, like a bedroom.

Creating an eco-friendly alternative to petroleum-based plastics is only one part of the long road to viability and it is with this goal that researchers have developed algae-based “completely biodegradable” polymers.

Soon discarded cleaning cloths or paper cups could be used as an efficient filter for water polluted with harmful dyes by coating them with a fine nano-fabric.

Researchers are developing a process with alternative substances that can be used to produce environmentally friendly water-repellent textile fibres.